New Beginnings
by Eagle9177
Summary: An accident sends the Lord of the Sith into the Mass Effect universe. He is discovered by the newly resurrected commander Jane Shepard. Just how will Revan affect her mission? Her life? And what will a certain Turian have to say as this newcomer gets closer to the commander? Rated M for language, Violence and adult situations
1. Chapter 1

**Hello Everyone! **

**This is my very first fan fiction, I hope you all enjoy it! The idea for this came to me a little while ago and I got super excited by the idea! The prospect of Revan in the mass effect world just sounds really fun to me. I am really looking forward to his interactions with Shepard and the others. This story will cover all of mass effect 2 and 3.**

**So a bit of background info for the story.**

**Shepard mostly followed the path of the Paragon but she could be better described as following a Paragade path. She is not a dick and will help people when she can, but wont hesitate to shoot anyone in the face if they are a threat. ****In mass effect one she did not romance anyone, instead she built up a very good report with Garrus.**

**As for Revan, the version I am writing is my own take on his character. You will get to see his philosophy and what makes him who he is. I am actually writing another fan fic that follows him through the KOTOR universe, at least my version of it.**

**I will stick to some of the game dialogue when it is very important or prudent but I may change some characters to suit my Shepards personality more. Annnnnnnnd I think that is it! ****I promise this will be the longest of my ramblings **

**Disclaimer! I own nothing! all things Starwars are owned by LucasArts. Everything Mass Effect is owned by Bioware. **

* * *

The hallways of the ship were empty; the only noise on the entire ship was the faint beeping of a console as its user typed away commands with an armored hand. The man was completely covered by a black robe and black and red armor, a black and red mask hid his face, and a hood further obscured any hope of gleaning details beyond the robes and armor.

Revan's brows were furrowed in concentration as he worked on the console. The work itself was not difficult but he still focused all his attention on it, he never did anything half-assed. A small indicator on his HUD informed him that the ship had been completely evacuated. Once he finished with his work here he would also evacuate and the test could begin.

For weeks he had poured the Star Forges' energies into creating a new and more powerful hyperdrive engine, and now it was finally completed. However it was still untested technology so he had it installed on an Interdictor class cruiser which had been specially made by the Star Forge. The ship had no weapons, no security systems, just the bare minimum for life support, gravity and enough systems to remotely start the hyperdrive engine. By building a ship like this the Star Forge had finished it in a matter of hours.

Revan was eager to test this new engine, if it worked it would be fifteen times faster than anything ever seen before, he could jump an entire fleet right into orbit above Coruscant. The Republic would be caught completely by surprise; they could seize the planet within a matter of hours and finally end this war. Then Revan could begin his true task, he could build the republic into a force capable of defending itself from the true enemy.

A slight frown came to his face then and his typing slowed for half a second before resuming its normal speed. He felt the familiar worry, constantly at the back of his mind, begin to creep forward. There was still so much left to do, so much work would need to be done after he took over the republic. Would they be ready in time?

The Republic was already close to falling, he was more worried about how things would go after he took over. The Jedi had painted him as a murderer, as a butcher, how much would the people resist him?

It would be much easier once he had eradicated the Jedi order. They were one of the biggest things that were wrong with the Republic. It was the Jedi who made him out to be evil. He would replace their idiotic and archaic order with his own, a new order that would serve the Republic, they would strengthen the Galaxy, uniting all under one rule.

The doubt began to fade away again and a smile spread across his lips, he could see it now. No more senseless wars. The true threat of the Sith would finally be eradicated and the galaxy could finally have peace. He had imagined it so many times, and like always it always bolstered his resolve, it made him feel like he could actually see this through.

With three final taps Revan smiled behind his mask, everything was set. "Captain Aulron, come in" he spoke through his helmets com

"Receiving you my lord" came the soldier's gruff reply, he was a good man. He had fought with Revan for years

"Everything is set; I am heading to the shuttle"

"Acknowledge, all ships are clear" just as the man finished speaking Revan heard alarms begin blaring in the background

"We have incoming ships!" shouted a soldier

"Report captain" said Revan firmly, this location was very out of the way, and there should be not shuttle traffic, which left only one option

"Republic cruisers inbound my lord! Fifteen capital ships" how had the republic found this location? Clearly it was no accident, they knew he was here and they intended to capture or kill him. He had a traitor in his midst; it was the only possible solution.

Revan turned to face the large view screen ahead of him. The republic ship had begun encircling them; firing on his two escort ships, this battle would be over in mere moments. Revan's tactical mind immediately sprang into action, forming the only plan possible "Captain initiate retreat. We will Rendezvous as Taris"

"Punching in coordinates now my lord, we will hold until you are safely aboard" Despite the man's calm voice Revan could both see and hear the dire situation they were in. The republic ships poured green laser fire onto the two Sith ship. He could see the shields begin to fail and explosions strike along the hull. To their credit the two Sith ships returned incredibly accurate fire, he saw multiple Republic turbo laser batteries explode. But it was too much, the ships would not last. Revan could hear the damage reports coming in over the com "No time captain, initiate jump now"

"But my lord-"

"Go now!" he shouted in an iron voice, the captain was a good men, he would see their lives thrown away for no good reason "I wanted to test this new engine, looks like I will get my chance" Revan added, grinning behind his mask, he felt his pulse begin to quicken slightly. This would certainly be an interesting experience "Jump now captain!"

"We shall await your arrival my lord"

Revan smiled slightly "I shall be along shortly" there was a few seconds of silence then the two Sith ships launched into hyperspace. Revan quickly keyed in the coordinates to Taris, the computer told him it would take one minute to calculate the jump. Looking back at the view screen he watched as the republic ships closed around his own, dozens of smaller shuttles began streaking towards him.

A small frown appeared on his lips now, he knew this was untested technology and any one of a thousand different things could go wrong. With a few rapid blinks Revan had opened his communications "Execute order forty five" he said solemnly. If the worst happened…well his work was still unfinished but at least the republic would stand a better chance.

The console beeped and Revan looked down, jump was ready. He looked back up, the boarding craft were almost on him "Well" he said with a grin "let's see what this thing could do" his resolve bolstered as he pushed the button. He was going to survive this! And he was going to fulfill his vision!

* * *

It just wasn't armor! That was the only thing Jane Shepard could think as she glanced at her…companion, shit she didn't know what Miranda was. Right now she was a woman in an incredibly tight cat suit that had brought her back to life. So she did owe the woman at least a little bit of gratitude, even if she was as cold as ice. "Miranda while I am meeting with Anderson I want you to go and buy some actual armor"

"I don't-" she quickly cut the accented woman off

"Look I know you are a capable fighter, not doubting that, but we are going to get into some heavy shit, I will feel a lot better knowing that the first bullet that gets through your barriers isn't going to kill you" she watched the woman's face remain completely calm

"Of course Shepard"

"Jacob you go with her, no offense but I don't want my first meeting with the council to be with two Cerberus agents in tow" she felt no need to lie to them, hell it was part of who she was, Shepard had always been blunt and two the point, she spoke her mind and didn't give a damn what people thought.

"None taken Shepard" replied the dark skinned man with a faint smile; he seemed like a good sort. From what she had gathered he wasn't too fond of Cerberus, yes he did serve them but it was only because he felt he could better protect the Alliance that way. Hell that was the only reason she was working for them. She had made it clear from the first moment she stepped onto the new Normandy, this was her operation, and she was not under Cerberus command. In fact she had quickly set about removing all Cerberus logos from the ship, inside and out, both for her own personal reasons and for logical ones. What kind of nob ran around in a ship covered in giant ass logos of a terrorist organization?

The shuttle came to a halt and Shepard quickly jumped out "When you have armor, pick up whatever other supplies we need and meet back at the ship" her two companions nodded and the shuttle took off again. Shepard walked across the Presidium. The place showed absolutely no sign of Saren's attack two years ago.

Shit she still couldn't get over that, she had been gone for two whole years! No one knew she was alive, well except from rumors that had apparently made it to the council's ears. Rumors planted by the Illusive man know doubt. Since she had found out about how long her absence had been she couldn't stop thinking about her friends, no matter what the Illusive man said, she was going to try and contact them; she couldn't just take his word that they wouldn't help.

Seeing Tali had helped to lift her spirits. The young Quarian was a ball of cheer and energy, although she had matured a lot. She wished Tali would have joined her back on the colony but she understood her reasoning; apparently there was some bad blood between the Quarian's and Cerberus.

Her mind wandered to Liara next, she could not believe that the Asari was working for the Shadow Broker; moreover she could not accept that she couldn't trust Liara. They had been close during the hunt for Saren and Shepard trusted the Asari with her life. She had sent her a message on her old address, hoping it was still active.

Shepard's eyes looked over to the giant Krogan stature standing in the water and her mind instantly turned to Wrex, she grinned, his voice instantly filling her mind with his patented greeting _"Shepard" _she almost laughed to herself. God she really missed the Krogan, a sentiment she was sure few humans would ever agree to. He was the only one, who Shepard would not ask for help from, not because she didn't want it, nothing could be further from the truth. The Krogan's presence at her side was something she missed greatly, as were his gruff comments, with Wrex at her side the Collectors wouldn't stand a chance. Next to Garrus he had probably seen the most action with her on their hunt for Saren.

Garrus…his face instantly filled her mind, every single detail was perfectly clear, his voice filled her ears. He was without a doubt the best friend she had ever had. The two of them could practically talk about anything. They could help each other with anything, he had come to her for help on more than once occasion and she was more than happy to to do whatever he needed, whether he simply wanted to vent his frustrations at the council and C-Sec or if he wanted help hunting down an evil bastard of a doctor. He was the one she was most anxious to contact, and the most scarred to contact. Would he be happy to see her? Would he be pissed? Her mind swirled with too many possibilities. She had yet to contact him because she didn't know what to say. Maybe after Omega…yes after Omega, when she could think on it more.

Shepard now stood before the office door of the human council member, while she was happy to see Anderson again; this also meant she would have to talk to the council again. Suppressing a groan Shepard walked through the doors.

Anderson immediately stopped talking as she entered and turned to face her "Ah, commander we were just talking about you" Shepard couldn't help but smile as she walked across the room and quickly gripped the man's hand, pulling him into a hug. She didn't give a shit that the council was watching, she didn't give a shit about protocol, this man had been her mentor for many years. There was no one she trusted or respected more "It's good to see you Anderson" she said warmly. To her delight he returned her embrace then they stepped back and she finally turned to look at the holographic displays of the council "Councilors" she said firmly, all the warmth and joy in voice gone. Despite having saved them she was sure they were still going to be the typical arrogant bastards that they always were, especially the Turian prick.

"Commander, it is good to see you well" said the Asari

"Like wise Councillor" she nodded, god she just wanted to get this over with so she could talk with Anderson. She knew she couldn't stay long which is why she wanted to get this shit out of the way

"We were just discussing the circumstances of your return" said the Salarian councilor

"Let me clear it up for you" she said flatly, taking a step forward to ensure she had their full attention "Cerberus found my body- I won't bother asking why the body of a spectre wasn't bothered to be recovered by the council or even the Alliance." She was still a bit pissed about that, but she supposed it all worked out for the best. Bastard councilors probably didn't even look for her, not after the shit-storm she had raised about the Reapers "Anyway they found my body and brought me back to life for the purpose of looking in the disappearance of human colonies. We now know that they are being abducted by the Collectors, who I suspect are working for the Reapers"

"Ah yes Reapers" said the Turian councilor in an exhausted tone, making quotes with two of his three fingers. _Here we go, prick_. Shepard didn't even listen as the councilor spoke, she merely waited for his mouth to stop moving

"Look I know you all want to live in the dark and pretend like everything is all roses but sooner or later that is going to bite you in the ass"

"The Reapers are clearly a myth Commander, one used by Saren to control the Geth, we believe that you believe they are real" said the Salarian Councillor

"For fucks sake!" she growled her patience at an end "I sacrificed human lives to save this sorry ass council! Okay forget about the Reapers for a second. Entire human colonies are being abducted! And you are going to do nothing, just throw me back out on my ass!"

"You put us in a difficult position commander; you are working for Cerberus, an enemy of the council. This is a capital offence" Shepard was about to dare that Asari to act on her threat but Anderson cut in

"That is far enough! Shepard is a damn hero! I am on this council too and I will not let this continue" Shepard tried to hold back her smile, she could always count on Anderson, he would never let her down.

"Perhaps we can come to some sort of compromise" said the Asari "Commander we will restore your status as a Spectre, although given your ties we will not announce this publicly. When your…partnership with Cerberus ends we will gladly welcome you back fully and openly" Shepard almost wanted to tell the council to shove it, she didn't need them, but with a nod from Anderson she bit back her anger

"I would be honored Councillor"

"Very well commander, we hope to a swift resolution this problem" and with that the meeting was over. Shepard let out a loud sigh and Anderson just chuckled

"Good to be back isn't it?" she looked over at the man, a grin was on his face

"Being dead was less work" she chuckled. She followed Anderson over to the balcony, leaning on the railing she looked across the Presidium.

"It's good to have you back Shepard"

"You just want someone else to yell at the council with you" she teased. Looking over at Anderson her grin faded, god he looked so tired. There were deep circles around his eyes, lines that hadn't been there before "how have you been Anderson?" she asked, letting her concern show

"I…well let's just say I've seen better days" she could hear the weariness in his voice "I don't think I am cut out for council work" he said, if it had been anyone else it would have seemed like a natural continuation of the conversation, but Shepard knew he was changing the subject "most of the days it just feels like I am banging by head against the wall"

"I know that feeling" she said, trying to lighten his spirits, seeing him like this tore her apart.

They spent the next fifteen minutes just chatting about what had been going on in the galaxy and by the end Anderson seemed to be a little better, his voice sounded less weary "I guess I should leave you to your work" she said finally, she really didn't want to leave but knew that she had to.

"Yeah" she pushed herself off the balcony and turned to face the older man

"I will keep in touch"

"You better. And Shepard?" his eyes looked serious but she could see they were filled with concern "be careful okay?"

"I will Anderson" she replied, trying to ease his worry, she shook his hand again and grinned "what are the odds of me dying twice?" Anderson chuckled and Shepard considered her mission a success. Turning she left the room and headed back to the Normandy, it was time to get this mission underway.


	2. Chapter 2

Pain exploded in the back of Revan's head as he smashed against the bulkhead. His vision was filled with spots and soon the ringing in his ears was replaced with the wail of sirens. The ship was tearing itself apart.

The jump to hyperspace had worked, at least for a moment. He had watched as the ship entered into a stream of hyperspace he had never seen before, the usual flash of whites had taken on a deep red color. Initially things had gone well but then the hyperdrive had overloaded and exploded. Which had actually made the ship speed up even further for several seconds, it had thrown Revan back against the wall with its ferocity, he had only just recovered when more explosions abruptly threw him back into real space and he had smashed his head.

Revan staggered to the console, quickly typing away as the ship shook, explosions were tearing it apart. The diagnostics told him the engines, hyperdrive, hell the entire rear half of the ship was gone! Gripping the console tightly he looked out the view screen at the planet beyond; it looked like it was just barely in range.

Turning Revan ran from the bridge and made his way towards the hanger, the explosions had yet to reach it. He stumbled his way through the shaking ship but finally made it to the hanger just as the first explosion hit the room. It seemed the hyperdrive would need more work. Despite his situation Revan was grinning as he ran into the shuttle. It had technically worked, the computer couldn't even register the speeds that the ship had been travelling at, there were just a few…kinks to work out.

Revan pulled himself into the pilot's seat and with quick practiced movements he turned the craft on and powered up the engines as explosions rocked the hanger. It took his thirty seconds before he could achieve lift off. Revan sped from the hanger as quickly as possible, the ship wouldn't last much longer- but it was too late.

A massive explosion destroyed the hanger; the blast launched his ship in a wild flight. Gritting his teeth Revan fought to regain control, and he almost succeeded. A large chunk of the ship smashed into his craft and instantly more warning sirens went off. He had lost his engines, the left wing was badly damaged and the hull had almost been breached. "Shit" he muttered, his arms straining to try and control the shuttle as he plummeted towards the planet.

The craft began the shutter as he entered the atmosphere, new warning signs told him the heat of re-entry was building to dangerous levels and the damaged ship could not cope. He would either explode or the ship would smash into the planet at uncontrolled speeds and likely kill him on impact.

Revan released the controls, the fight was useless, he had never given up in his life, and he wasn't now but trying to steer the craft now was pointless, nothing was responding. Revan moved from the Pilots seat and into the small cargo hold. This was his personal shuttle and was made very well; the hold had been specially reinforced to protect both him and the precious cargo he liked to travel with.

Revan strapped himself into the seat, gripping the large durasteel crate next to him, he summoned the force, allowing it to flow through his body he used it to actually strengthen his body for a short time, hoping that it would help him absorb some of the impact. T

The proximity alarm began blaring wildly, impact was imminent. Revan smiled a humorless smile behind his mask, if this all went wrong…well at least he could see Meetra again.

"_Ni su'cuyi, gar kyr'adyc, ni partayli, gar darasuum,_ Meetra" Revan closed his eyes and smiled again, this time it was warm, he could almost see her now. Force he was tired, so tired of it all, death really didn't seem so bad right now. He could use a rest.

* * *

Shepard sent five rounds from the Mattock down the range in two seconds. She couldn't help but grin at the grouping. The rifle had pretty nice power, it was a little slow firing for her taste but it would be a nice combo with her plasma shotgun. Those two weapons would also work extremely well with her biotics. She could charge into the center of enemies, blow them apart with her shot gun but still be able to deal with far off threats with the mattock.

Shepard replaced the thermal clip and headed out of the cargo bay, where she had insisted on setting up a live fire range, she wanted to be able to test her weapon mods before taking them out into the field.

She rode the elevator up into her personal cabin and put the rifle back with the rest of her gear. She had decided to give that blood dragon armor a try, it interfaced with her biotics pretty nicely and she had a feeling that they would be needed on Omega.

The stations reputation was well earned, although Shepard had never actually been there herself she had heard plenty of stories. It was well known among Alliance military, brass warned about going there wearing anything that could give you away as a soldier. More than one murder of an alliance soldier had occurred on the damn station. Shepard just hoped she wouldn't have to spend long on the station, if everything went to plan she would grab Solus and Archangel and then get heading towards their next recruit.

Shepard sat at her desk; she actually hadn't decided who to go after next. A Krogan warlord or a convict? Frankly no other warlord could compare with Wrex so it felt kind of pointless to her; still apparently this Okeer had valuable information on the collectors. That would probably be the best call; she could pick up the prisoner after.

A beeping caught her attention and she stared at her terminal, how long had that been beeping? God she really must have been out of it. She quickly tapped the icon and opened the message, a smile coming to her face.

"_Shepard you have no idea how happy I am to hear from you! My information told me that you were alive but actually hearing from you…well it's like a dream! Unfortunately I can't say much, never know who may get a hold of this. Next time you are on Illium stop by, I can always make time for an old friend"_

Shepard quickly typed her reply, promising that as soon as time permitted she would come and see the Asari. It seemed the rumors of Liara being an information broker was true, and apparently one with competition. She quickly added the line "Stay safe" to the end of her message before sending it. At least she knew Liara was doing well and was happy to see her.

Now it was only Ashley, Wrex and Garrus she had yet to contact. She hadn't contacted Ashley because…well she could only imagine how well badly the gunnery chief would react to her working with a terrorist organization. She hadn't contacted Wrex because…well she had no idea of how the hell to get a hold of him, short of actually flying to Tuchanka.

Then there was Garrus. God she still had no idea what she was going to say to him, she still couldn't help but feel like he would be upset with her. Gone for two years (even if it wasn't up to her) and now working for a pro human terrorist organization- no not working for- she was simply using their resources. Still didn't look good.

Shepard sighed, damn her brain, why couldn't it ever let her think of the best case scenarios?

"Commander I got something you might want to check out" Shepard almost fell out of her chair at the sudden voice over the intercom. Dammit she was zoning out way too much!

"What is it Joker?" she asked the pilot, slightly thankful for him interrupting her thoughts

"We were coming in for the final approach vector on the relay when EDI picked up a distress call from a nearby planet"

"What kind of distress call?" she was going to assist no matter what, she just wanted to know if she was going to be shooting some pirates in the face or just giving a freighter some fuel

"Unknown" replied the synthesized voice of EDI, Shepard still wasn't sure if she could trust the AI, the odds of it being a spy for the Illusive mad were quite high "the signature does not match any known frequencies"

"What do you mean?"

"It belongs to neither Turian, Asari, Salarian nor any other recognized council species. In fact the transmission is unlike any before recorded in council space. Also the signature only followed after my scanners detected a massive burst of unknown energy, which is what prompted my investigation" Well the AI certainly didn't bother to sum things up.

"Take us in Joker, let's see who needs saving"

"Maybe it's a ship full of beautiful women" muttered the pilot. Shepard laughed as she got up and headed to her locker

"Keep dreaming"

"Oh I will" Shepard just shook her head as she began getting into her armor, better to be prepared for the worst

"EDI, tell Miranda and Jacob to suit up and meet me in the bridge"

"Acknowledged commander."

Shepard stood behind Joker as the pilot brought them in closer, she nodded to Miranda and Jacob as they came up behind her, the latter now wearing a suit of black and gold armor "Getting a view now commander" said Joker. Shepard looked out the view screen and saw the large bits of debris floating in space

"Holy hell" muttered Jacob, Shepard simply nodded in agreement. Some of the debris floating around was massive

"Shepard initial scans do not match any known silhouettes. This ship is of unknown design" stated EDI

"Well looks like we might be a bit late to save any survivors" muttered Joker, the pilot was right, there could not be anyone left on the ship, it was completely destroyed. Shepard was worried at what could have destroyed a vessel of this size; her mind instantly went to the collectors.

The memories slammed into her like a tidal wave. She felt the heat on her face as the Normandy exploded, the collectors beam tearing through its hull. She heard Joker screaming her name. She remembered being blasted into space. She could feel as she chocked for air, everything was going black, her body going numb-

"Shepard?" she snapped her head towards Miranda

"Yeah!" she said quickly, noting the concerned look in the woman's eyes, her heart was pounding and she could feel sweat beading down her face, god it felt like she was standing on Therum again "EDI can you scan to see if any escape pods made it to the planet below?"

"I am not registering any distress signals. However I am picking up a faint energy trail leading from the ship down to the planet. It is similar to the energy spike I registered before picking up the signal"

"Can you follow it?"

"Affirmative, plotting a course now"

"Take us down Joker, Miranda and Jacob; you are with me in the shuttle." Shepard turned and took a shaky step forward, god her legs felt like jelly. _Shake it off dammit! You are not some scared little girl anymore!_ Summoning forth her resolve Shepard resumed her normal confident stride and headed down to the hangar.

The flight down to the planet took about fifteen minutes, which was spent mostly in silence. Joker was taking the Normandy in to try and retrieve a piece of the ship for the techs to study.

"Coming in for a landing commander, we have a visual on the wreckage" said the pilot over her com. The shuttle settled down and the hatch opened, Shepard was the first to jump out. She immediately unslung her shotgun and extended, just because it was a crash didn't mean they were friendly. Jacob and Miranda both followed suit.

The shuttle was not like any she had ever seen before, at least what was left of it. The left wing had been torn off, and a wing on the top of the craft was half missing. The angular craft and left a massive gouge in the earth before it had finally come to a halt. Smoke came from the craft but she couldn't see any fire, and so far no signs of life.

Shepard quickly advanced on the shuttle, the front view screen was completely blacked out and there were no side doors. Moving around the back she came to the large door which was badly dented. Shepard could see no means of opening the door from the outside "Jacob, think you can cut through this?"

"Sure thing, just give me a minute" the big man returned his pistol to his back and activated his Omni-tool. Sparks flew as he worked; Miranda meanwhile was scanning the craft

"Shepard I have never seen a shuttle like this. What's more I cannot pick up any traces of Element Zero. After a crash like that there would be some kind of leak" that was extremely odd. Every ship ran on Eezo, it was impossible to make a mass jump without it, hell it was impossible to fly without it.

A loud crash interrupted her thoughts, along with a surprised shout from Jacob "Damn that came down quick. The crash must have destroyed the safety mechanism" Shepard chuckled as she moved into the craft

"I prefer a crew member who wasn't a pancake. Nice reflexes by the way" Jacob grinned in response and followed her into the craft "Hello?" she called "are there any survivors?" cargo bay was small, not much room for people.

"Shepard over here" called Miranda. She instantly turned to the brunette woman. She was kneeling down near a large crate. Shepard quickly moved over to her, stepping around the crate she saw the object of interest. A body was sprawled across the floor, a quick glance at the seat showed that his restraints had snapped at the impact and was thrown forward, probably smashing his head and body on the wall and crate on the way.

Shepard returned her attention to the body, they were face down and clad in what looked like a black…robe? She had no idea

"Are they alive?" she asked, kneeling down at their head

"I am getting faint life signs" Shepard carefully grabbed their shoulders, nodding to Miranda who grabbed the legs they rolled the person over. Shepard immediately raised her eye brow when she took in the sight. The…well it looked like a man, was wearing a strange robe…thing that covered most of their body, their chest was covered by what looked like a thick black and red armored chest piece, their hands were covered by black and red gauntlets made of…metal? Their head was also completely covered by a black and red mask that and a blackened T shaped visor, a hood covered the rest of their face

"What the hell are you wearing?" she muttered, checking the body over for visible wounds. She noted two silver tubes hanging at either of the stranger's hip; both had intricate designs carved into them. She could see no wounds nor could she see any weapons "Okay let's get him back to the shuttle. I got him, Miranda, Jacob you grab that crate, I am sure our friend may want it when he wakes up" Shepard carefully slung the man over her shoulders, grunting under the effort. Damn he was heavy! And by the sound of it there was more armor under those robes.

Shepard was panting by the time she got to the shuttle and carefully secured the man into a seat. Jacob and Miranda arrived a minute later, putting the crate into the shuttle "You okay Shepard?" asked Jacob "a little out of shape?" he added with a chuckle

"He is damn heavy!" she defended. Jacob just grinned as he strapped himself in. She followed his actions, activating her com "Joker we are on our way back, tell Chakwas to prepare to receive one patient"

"Made a new friend Shepard?"

"Yeah, wearing a robe or something"

"Ah crap did we pick up a religious wacko?"

"Maybe, one who wears heavy as shit armor"

"Can't wait to meet him," groaned the pilot. Shepard just laughed as she looked back at the unconscious man. Just what had she gotten herself into now?

* * *

**Okay so a bit about what happened in that chapter.**

**You may be wondering what was going on with Shepard when she saw the wreckage, that was my attempt to show that she still has a bit of mental trauma over you know...dying. I will be exploring this further on. I wanted to show that Shepard is a real person and has her own issues that she is dealing with, in the first two games Shepard is a rock and seemingly unaffected by everything going. This was explored more in Mass Effect 3 and it was good but I will be expanding on it greatly.**

**As for Revans bit. That language he spoke is Mandelorian, it is a ritual for remembering the dead, I will reveal exactly what it means in later chapters...or I guess you could look it up. Also I will be exploring his relationship with Meetra further as well. I know in Cannon that she is not dead and I am not saying she is, but I altered it a little so Revan thinks that she is. **

**Well that's it some me! please review, all constructive criticism is appreciated, or just general comments on the story! Just don't me a dick, ha ha. **


	3. Chapter 3

Pain was something Revan was well accustomed to, it was universal, it was something that all living things felt. So why the hell did he feel pain? His head hurt like hell, there was a sharp pain in his side every time he breathed, and Revan instantly recognized it as broken ribs, possibly two. Looked like he wouldn't be getting that rest.

As his senses came back to him he instantly reached out with the force to sense his surroundings. He could sense one being just a few feet away from him, he could not sense any violence within her, and she seemed to be perfectly calm.

The simple fact that he was still able to use the force was a bit confusing. If he had been captured by the Republic then they would have immediately slapped a force suppression collar on him, or just shot him in the head.

Continuing his search Revan stretched his senses out beyond the small room he was in to try and learn more about his situation. He used the force to quickly map out his surroundings and locate all forms of life; it quickly became apparent he was on a ship as after a certain point he could only feel the black emptiness of space.

On the deck where he was, Revan could sense over a dozen life forms in two rooms which he surmised were the crew quarters, most seemed to be in a state of deep sleep or almost sleep. He then searched the deck below, finding only two life signs below him. He guessed that is must be relatively late at night and only the skeleton crew were still awake.

He took a very shallow breath; the sharp pain that coursed through him interrupted his searching. Silently cursing himself Revan began channeling the majority of his powers to healing his body, he would need to be healed if he needed to make an escape. Feeling his wounds beginning to fade away, Revan once more reached out and continued his search.

He noted as he searched the level above him that no one seemed to give off any particular aura in the force, while he could sense some lingering feelings of anger, hate, love, happiness, feelings that were to be expected in the average person, no one stood out in the force.

The force flowed through all living things, he could sense it in the people around him but there was an odd quality to it. Almost as if it lay…dormant, untapped for lack of a better phrase. But how was that possible? The ability to access force powers came from within and it relied on the user's personal connection to the fore, but when the powers were actually made manifest it left a mark, an echo as it were. The nature of its uses affected the world around the user. Someone channeling the darkside of the force used hate, rage, violence, and other negative feelings to bolster their power, which in turn warped the nature of the force around them, reflecting that the user was doing.

While it did take a particularly large act of good or evil to permanently change the nature of the force in an area, such as the events at Malachor. Even small acts of using the force would temporarily leave a ripple in the force, helping to color the nature of the area one was in. But here…it was neutral, absolute perfect neutrality; this was the force's true nature. It was as if the force had gone completely untapped.

Revan entertained the idea that perhaps there were just no force users on the ship, but he felt it deep down. There was something wrong here, no not wrong, but different. He repressed his sigh; maybe he was just reading too much into things, he had been prepared for death only to wake up in foreign surroundings, and in massive pain. Centering himself Revan took a shallow breath, feeling the effects of his force healing as his body did not seek to punish him for the act.

Revan abandoned his search of the ship, he had seen enough. While he could not sense any outward hostility from those he had sensed, neither could he feel any good intentions from them. His best bet was to escape now, while most of the ship was sleeping, he would steal a shuttle and make a jump to rendezvous with his forces. He knew that no one was going to help him; he would have to help himself.

Running a last check of his body Revan stiffened as he felt a slight pressure on his wrists. How the hell had he not noticed those before? Cursing himself for his stupidity Revan once more calmed himself, and opened his eyes.

His suspicions from the faint chill were confirmed, he was unarmored, the majority of his armor and clothing was gone, he wore only the dark trousers from under his robes. Slowly turning his head he looked down at his restraints, they appeared to be a simple leather strap, he could easily break those. Next he looked over to the rooms other occupant, she was currently seated at a desk, typing away at a holo terminal? He couldn't quite tell- it didn't matter.

Taking in a breath Revan channeled the force through his body, augmenting his strength. In one swift movement he snapped the restraints and spun from the bed, landing behind the woman before she had even reacted. Revan wrapped an arm around her neck, his other hand covering her mouth to silence her surprised cry. He immediately pulled her down, landing roughly on his back they fell out of view of the window and he kept her held tightly on top of him.

"Don't do anything stupid and I will not hurt you" he spoke quietly in her ear, he could sense her fear "I am going to ask you some questions, you will answer them. Try to call for help and I will snap your neck before you even make a sound, clear?" the woman nodded "and I will know if you are lying" he added, for emphasis "now first question, where am I?" he moved his hand from her mouth, still keeping his arm around her neck

"You are aboard the SSV Normandy" she replied, he picked up a faint accent in her voice…Talravian maybe? It didn't matter.

"Are you with the Republic?" he asked, although he already doubted that, the Republic would have executed him as soon as they found him.

"Republic?" she asked, confusion in her voice "I don't know about any republic" he could sense that she was not lying. But how was that possible? Everyone knew about the Republic! "I…I am an Alliance medical officer"

"Liar" he growled, instantly picking out the lie through the force. Forget it; he would just do this the easier way. He reached out into her mind and spoke with the power of the force

"Tell me who you work for"

"I work for Cerberus" she replied, her tone perfectly calm now and he could feel his powers taking control of her

"Who or what is Cerberus" he had never heard that word before, Revan was getting more confused with every question he asked

"A terrorist organization that seeks to advance the cause of humans in the galaxy" great he had been rescued by a bunch of xenophobic pricks "but I work directly for the commander, not the Illusive Man" Revan could feel that last bit of information was offered freely by the doctor, her will breaking free of his control, seeking to defend herself, her choices. The woman was tougher than she looked, although he really hadn't been exerting that much control over her.

"And who is the commander and is she part if Cerberus?" he asked, once more forcing his will on her

"Commander Jane Shepard leads us. She was recruited by Cerberus to investigate attacks on human colonies, but she is just using them for their resources and does not agree with their personal agenda" well that was slightly better, he slightly admired this commander, it was a clever play.

"Okay, last question. Where are my belongings?" If he was going to make an escape then he would prefer to do it clothed.

"Your clothes are in the bin by the door. Your armor and weapons were sent up to the armory"

"Thank you doctor" with that he lightly touched her forehead with his free hand and the woman went limp. Revan gently set her down and rose, his force sense telling him no one had been alerted, he quickly moved to the bin and began redressing.

Pulling his hood up Revan left the medbay and in perfect silence he walked across the room towards the elevator, cocking an eyebrow at the holo controls. He had never personally encountered technology such as this, although he had heard of it. Most people still preferred actual physical controls. He carefully pushed the glowing button and stepped onto the elevator, his equipment should be one floor up, the CIC, the next floor was labelled _Captain's cabin_. Revan pushed the button to the CIC and the elevator silently began moving.

Revan watched as the display told him he had reached the CIC but the doors did not open, instead he watched as it continued up to the captain's cabin. Revan glanced up, seeing the small security camera in the corner. Shit, he was being monumentally stupid today; in his confusion about his surroundings and instinct to escape he had actually forgotten about security systems. Well it looked like the captain wanted to say hello. Revan grinned; he was going to make her work for it though.

Reaching out with the force he grabbed the elevator with an invisible fist, halting its ascension. With a wave of his hand he ripped the doors open, dropping to the ground he slid through the small gap and jumped down, landing in the CIC. Almost immediately an alarm began blaring throughout the ship and a distinctly feminine voice spoke through the ships speakers as Revan ran into the room labelled armory.

"Hey asshole! If you hurt Chakwas then I am going to tear your head off. Stop running!" Revan couldn't help but grin at the words. The woman's voice held a great amount of strength and confidence, it reminded him of- his thoughts were interrupted by a shout

"Freeze!" Revan regarded the large dark skinned man who held a rather odd looking rifle. Revan did not hesitate to launch himself forward with force augmented speed; he slammed his shoulder into the man's chest, throwing him against the wall. Revan instantly spun, hammering a blow to the man's gut, causing him to double over and then his elbow connected with the back of the man's head, causing him to drop to the floor.

Revan's hands shot out, his two lightsabers instantly landed into his hands. He clipped them to his belt, next he grabbed his helmet with the force, there was no time for the rest of his armor "Damn" he muttered and ran back to the elevator, putting on his mask as he ran. The door opened just as his HUD flared to life, giving him a perfect view of the woman in the elevator.

She stood about five foot nine, just barely shorter than him. She had flame red hair down to her shoulders, bright emerald eyes glared at him, her full lips and strong jaw were locked into a scowl yet she still retained her immense beauty, the glowing orange scars gave her a very menacing appearance, but to Revan it only added to her attractiveness. She was wearing a black and white uniform devoid of any logos; she was holding a large three barreled gun which had a swooping curve as part of its main design.

Revan could instantly sense her in the force; she was a whirlwind of strength and confidence. He could feel the conflicted emotions within her; anger and compassion were split almost equally. While he instantly knew that she would never kill an innocent or someone unarmed she also would not hesitate to kill any who posed a threat to her or those she cared about. He also noted that she had a very strong will; it took him a fraction of a second to determine that she would be immune to all forms of manipulation.

While he could not detect any force abilities within her he did pick up on a strange substance coursing through her and he felt it granted her tremendous power "One more step and you die" she growled. Revan realized the situation he was in, he had attacked this woman's crew and she would do whatever it took to protect them. Perhaps it had been a bad idea to try and escape, but if these people found out who he was then it would likely lead to a fight anyway. Still they had healed him…so he would repay that debt by not killing anyone while he escaped.

Revan threw his hand forward, slamming the commander into the wall with the force. She let out a loud grunt, weapon falling away from him. Revan bolted forward and smacked the weapon from her hand, sending it skidding into the corner. He spun and hit the button to for the shuttle bay. He turned back just in time to avoid the blow he had sensed coming, ducking under the punch Revan slammed his fist into the commanders gut. The breath whooshed out from her and he threw his shoulder into her chest, knocking her back against the wall, he then intended to pin her with the force.

He was taken completely off guard with how quickly she recovered. A knee slammed up into his gut staggering the Sith Lord back two steps as he tried to regain himself, damn she was strong. The commander didn't give him time to recover, she closed the distance between them in a heartbeat, her whole body started to glow blue, her raised fist glowed more harshly than any other part. Revan was completely stunned, what kind of power was that? He didn't have time to think as the glowing blue fist slammed into the side of his head. Stars exploded in his eyes and he stumbled back, his head smacking against with the wall from the force of the punch.

The power of her punch shouldn't have been possible! He hadn't sensed any force powers from the commander, but the power behind the attack was as powerful as his own force strengthened hits. Revan shook his head, barely ducking under a second punch; he couldn't dwell on that now. This fight just got much more dangerous, but she wasn't the only one with power!

Revan's back hit the elevator door as he weaved past a third punch. Channeling the force through his body he blocked a fourth punch before his free hand snapped out, catching the commander in the jaw. She grunted loudly, her head snapping back as she stumbling back a step and Revan pressed his advantage. He landed a second punch, striking the commanders diaphragm.

She sunk to her knees, the air completely driven from her body. Revan quickly reached out with the force and wrapped her in an invisible fist. Her eyes were wide with shock and he could see the fury written on her face, a vein bulged in her neck as she struggled against the force.

Revan grinned behind his helmet, not out of arrogance, he was just thankful that the fight was over the woman was- the commander snarled in anger, the blue light exploding all over her body she shattered his hold on her and slammed right into his chest.

He didn't even have enough breath left in his body to grunt as she smashed into him, crashing through the elevator door to land roughly in the room beyond. His whole head was pounding and his vision was spinning as he tried to stare at the woman on top of him. Dammit that had hurt! He had definitely broken his ribs again.

A fist slammed into his face, if he hadn't already been lying on the ground the force of the blow would have caused his head to smash back against the helmet. That was the downside to these Mandelorian helmets, they would protect you on the outside, but on the inside it felt like being bounced around in a durasteel box.

Revan summoned all his strength and slammed his hand into the commander's chest, hitting her with the force rather than his actual fist. She was launched off of him and he heard her crash somewhere beyond. Revan groaned as he rolled onto his side, hissing at the pain in his side. He slowly got to his feet, he hurt all over and his head was still spinning, he began healing his wounds once more as he scanned for his foe.

He saw the commander getting to her feet, climbing out of a group of crates she had slammed into. That was enough of this! In an instant both lightsabers were in his hand. The commander was advancing on him again, her whole body glowing again. Revan was only a second from igniting his weapons when seven figures leapt down from the elevator and stormed through the shattered door, they trained rifles on him and formed a semicircle in front of him.

If he wasn't wounded and exhausted Revan was confident that he could deflect the projectiles and make it among the group to eliminate them in melee, but in this state… Revan gently placed the lightsabers on the ground at his feet and took three steps back. If he really needed to escape then he would just kill his way out, but for now he would change tactics and try diplomacy.

There were several long seconds of silence and absolute stillness. He couldn't sense the commander's thoughts but he could tell that she was still furious.

"Too late to talk about this?" he asked, grinning

"Are you serious?" she asked, not amused

"Well it's either that or keep fighting." He replied with a shrug, he wouldn't blame her if she just decided to gun him down right here, but something told him that she wouldn't "and to be fair I didn't actually kill anyone. The doctor is merely sleeping, and that soldier in the armory will recover in a few hours" he added, it was worth a shot to remind this woman that he hadn't really hurt anyone, well nothing more than a few bacta injections wouldn't fix up.

"Still not a very good reason why I shouldn't kill you" she said seriously "we rescued you from a crash, you were barely alive and you repay me by attacking me and my crew?" The commander had a point; it hadn't exactly been most courteous thing to do.

"A fair point but from where I come from, well let's just say no one would help me out of the goodness of their heart. I woke in a strange place surrounded by people I don't know, and I was restrained. How would you have reacted commander?" it was second nature to Revan by now, he had learned that you could not trust others to act in your best interest. Trust was a luxury he could not afford to give to everyone. He trusted three beings in the entire galaxy, one was dead, one was a bloody droid and the other was among the people he had crushed just a few short years ago.

"I would have found out what the people wanted of me first. We restrained you because Chakwas was worried you may start thrashing and hurt yourself."

"Reasonable, but I can't remember the last time anyone had my best interests in mind." It was trued, his apprentice and former friend wanted him dead, hell half the galaxy wanted him dead. He was sure that even some of his own people wouldn't have helped him if they had been the ones to find him. If they did they would do it for hope of a promotion or some kind of favor.

Revan noted a change on the commanders expression, it flashed so quickly that he may have imagined it, but for a split second he swore that her features softened to something akin to sorrow flashed in her face, but then it was gone and her face was stern again. A quick look with the force told him that something about his words had indeed helped his case.

The commander stared at him long and hard, he could tell she was trying to come to a decision, but her strong will made it impossible for him to read her thoughts. It was almost thirty seconds before she spoke again

"Follow me, keep your hands at your sides, any sudden moves and we will put you down, understood?" her tone was like iron, she would broker no argument, if he tried he knew she would have him shot.

"Perfectly commander" perhaps this way was the best. At least he could get his bearings, perhaps barter for information on his location and a way home. No doubt this commander would want something from him, credits, or technology maybe. Part of him thought that the commander wouldn't demand anything from him; he had sensed the goodness in her. His logic quickly crushed that gut feeling though, that wouldn't happen. Everybody wanted something, if he couldn't pay the price then he would take what he needed by force, and he wouldn't be pulling his punches next time.

* * *

Shepard sighed as the Chakwas scanned her wounds with an omni-tool "I am fine" she grumbled "you're the one who got knocked unconscious" although the older woman did seem to be unharmed, it seemed that masked lunatic had been telling the truth.

"Oh stop whining. You have two broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder, fine is far from the truth" Chakwas did have a point. Shepard felt like she had just gone five rounds with a Krogan and didn't come out the winner. If the security team hadn't shown up when they did...well the man probably would have escaped, something he seemed pretty desperate to do.

"You will need at least a week's worth of bed rest before you are clear for field duty. These implants seem to accelerate your healing but broken bones still take time" Shepard just grumbled, they were due at Omega tomorrow at thirteen hundred hours, local time. She sure as hell didn't plan on lying in bed, too much to do.

She needed to find that Salarian professor, and then she needed to find this Archangel guy. But first she had to deal with a problem located one floor down from her.

"Okay I am all finished up here, please try and take it easy. Now I have to go and check on our new friend, you probably made his wounds even worse, though I am impressed he managed to fight so well with broken ribs and a concussion."

"I will go down with you doc, I need to have a little chat with him" Shepard pulled her shirt back on as Chakwas moved away, and hoped off the table. There was also no chance in hell she was leaving the older woman alone with that man

"Well just be careful commander, he can be…very persuasive" Shepard turned at the woman's tone, eyes her carefully

"What do you mean?" rage flooded through her as she imagined what that bastard had done "Karen what did he do to you?" he growled taking a step towards the doctor. If he did anything to her she would rip that fuckers head off.

"He did not hurt me commander. He simply asked me questions, and I answered. I told him everything he wanted to know. I tried to lie but…" the woman looked down her voice had gotten quiet "he knew I was lying and then, it was like he was in my head. I couldn't lie to him, I was completely incapable of tell him anything but the truth"

How was that possible? Could he possess some kind of technology that made people tell the truth? The only thing she knew of that could control people was… Shepard immediately ran from the room. Shit this was not good!

She got into the ruined elevator, it still worked but they had taken the door off. Chakwas ran in beside her "Commander what is going on?"

"The only thing that can control people like that is the Reapers" what the doctor had described sounded a lot like indoctrination. Was this…man some kind of new advanced Reaper? Meant to infiltrate the galaxy and somehow secure their return? She wasn't going to take any chances.

The elevator stopped and Shepard wasted no time in turning right and quickly walking to the garbage compactor room, where two guards were stationed outside the locked door. She grabbed a pistol from one of the guards "On me" she ordered "EDI, open the door" the red seal disappeared and the door slid open silently.

Shepard marched inside, the two guards flanking her and Chakwas just a step behind. The man was facing them as they entered, his face hidden behind that red and black mask "Commander" he said in an even tone. Shepard didn't say anything before leveling the pistol at his head.

"Who are you?" she demanded, trying to see any evidence of Reaper technology on him, an impossible task due to his entire body being hidden. Although Chakwas would have called her if she had found anything out of the ordinary during her examination.

"Ah I suppose we never were introduced. My name is Revan" he said, his tone still level and devoid of emotion "and you are Commander Jane Shepard." She didn't bother asking how he knew her name, she was slightly famous and he also could have gotten that information from Chakwas.

"I will ask this only once. Do you work for the Reapers?"

"Reapers?" the man asked, cocking his head slightly, he did appear genuinely confused by the word, but she wouldn't be convinced by a little acting "I am unfamiliar with that term. Are they a rival organization to Cerberus?"

"Do you have any way of proving you do not work for the Reapers?" she wasn't going to bother with an explanation of who they were, she wanted to get to the bottom of this. However even as she asked the question Shepard knew the odds of that were low; they had no way to test for indoctrination.

"How can I prove that when I do now know what they are?" annoyance was evident in his tone now. He did have a point, she would try something else

"How did you force Chakwas to tell the truth?"

"Oh that!" the man seemed to relax slightly, he crossed his arms as he explained "that is a simple force technique to make people of a weaker will to speak only the truth. Do not worry, no damage is done, I merely needed information." Shepard stared at the masked man

"A what technique?" she asked. The word did not ring any bells, although some of his powers during their fight had seemed like biotic powers but she had not seen the blue glow of mass effect fields that were created when harnessing biotics. She had also never heard of a biotic power that could control peoples mind.

"A force technique…you don't know of the force?" Shepard simply shook her head, what the hell was he talking about? What was the force?

"Do you mean biotics?" she asked, perhaps they used a different word where he was from

"That depends…what are biotics?"

"Certain individuals who have been exposed to trace elements of Element Zero, or Eezo develop nodes in our bodies. Through implants we can generate mass effect fields with our bodies to harness dark energy" to illustrate her point she activated her biotics and lifted a nearby crate from the floor, surrounding it in a blue glow.

Shepard set the crate down and looked back at the masked man "Your abilities are…similar to the force" he began. A second later every object in the room not bolted to the ground lifted from the floor but Shepard neither saw nor felt a mass effect field being generated. Everything was gently set back down and Revan spoke again "But to use the force does not require implants, nor a forging element in one's body, it is something that occurs naturally, although few people can use the force…this explains what I sensed in you, it must be this element zero" Shepard almost laughed at his words

"Excuse me did you say sense? You can sense the eezo in me?"

"The force grants me the ability to sense many things. Your will is very strong so it is hard for me to read your inner emotions and thoughts. But your companion for instance" he gestured to the man on her left "his name is Davis Jackson. He was born on a colony named New Toronto. His mother died of cancer when he was twelve, his father-"

"Shut the fuck up!" screamed Jackson, raising his rifle to aim at the man. Shepard forced her shock down as she quickly grabbed the rifle

"You are both dismissed" she said quickly, Jackson's companion grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him from the room, sidestepping the doctor.

Shepard turned back to Revan "How the hell did you do that?" she demanded, that was impossible! Reading minds was some bullshit from science fiction and fantasy

"As I said, the force grants many abilities, that is just a small fraction of what I can do." Shepard simply stood stunned. How was this possible? Her mind tried to think of a way that this could simply be a trick but no matter how hard she tried nothing could disprove what had just happened, at least not without sounding almost as improbable as mind reading. "It is not a trick" said Revan suddenly

"Stay out of my head" she snarled, she wasn't about to have someone rooting through her mind.

"I wasn't, the disbelief was written all over your face. Here let me further prove it" Revan stepped forward, his hand reaching out to her. Shepard immediately snapped the pistol back up to his head

"Not another step" she growled

"I mean no harm" he replied gently, his tone was calm and soothing, it made her want to believe him but she wasn't about to let her guard down. Shepard put her finger on the trigger; if he even tried to move the gun then her finger would flex and it would go off.

"One wrong move and you die"

"I understand. You will feel a slight pain in your ribs, but I promise I am not harming you" with that he set his gloved hand on her injured rib. Shepard winced as pain erupted in her side; she almost shot the man then as her mind instantly screamed out that he was attacking her somehow. She decided to give the man a moment longer. The pain was brief and soon all the former discomfort was gone and the pain was slowly fading.

They stood in silence for a full minute before Revan stepped back "Your wounds are now healed" he said flatly. Shepard blinked several times before the meaning hit her. The pain in her ribs was gone, even the soreness in her shoulder was gone!

"How is this possible?" she breathed, her mind was spinning this was fucking magic! Straight out of a fairy tale! Revan chuckled

"If you want a scientific or philosophical reason for the force existing I have none, it simply is." He took another step back from her "now I have answered your questions, I have one of my own, just one"

"And what is that?" she asked, she still didn't trust him but he had seemed pretty forthcoming about his powers. He could have kept them a secret and used them to his advantage, but he hadn't, she had to respect that.

"Where the hell am I?"

* * *

**Wow that was actually more difficult to write than I thought!**

**The fight scene was alot of fun though! Hoped you all liked it, I really wanted Revan and Shepards first real encounter to be them engaging in fisticuffs.**

**So I did a lot of research into the force and biotics before writing this story. **

**As for the force, I will not EVER mention midichlorians! I think the idea of the force just being a bacteria that some people have more of is really lame! Sorry to all those who like the idea...**

**Anyway I am going for more of the original feel that was set about in the original trilogy, specifically Alec Guinness's first description of the force in A New Hope.**

**As this is the Mass Effect universe they have not heard of the force (Yes I am altering earth history a little for this) therefore the force has never been used in this universe but it still exist. I am still working out exactly why there are no force users here. **

**Also the idea of force powers leaving an after affect dependent on what type of power was used. This was inspired by Jedi often remarking that the darkside was strong in certain places, presumably where great evil happened. Therefore Revan can sense the absence of any force powers being used. **

**Okay onto the Biotics! I am trying to make a create a contrast between the force and biotics. The force is a much more powerful and finely honed power, in comparison I want biotics to feel more raw and brutal. Clearly the force is stronger, but I don't want to make it TOO unfair. That being said this is Revan we are talking about! In my mind he is one of the most powerful Jedi ever to live**** and I am going to show that later on.**

**So don't worry everyone! This galaxy hasn't even had a taste of Revan's power!**

**Also the chapters are likely to get longer from here on in. I just needed to set up the setting first, now I can really dive into developing the characters!**

**Well that's enough rambling from me! I will try to not go on this long again...but I already said that...oops!**


	4. Chapter 4

Revan stared at the map filling the center of the CIC. The commander had told him they were near a space station called Omega in the Sahrabarik system. The words meant nothing to Revan and so she had taken him up to the CIC and shown him the galaxy map, he could only stare in silence.

Everything was wrong, planets that should have been there were not, others had different names. He could not find Coruscant, the Commander hadn't even recognized the name! What was going on here? "What is that?" he asked, zooming in on their current location he found a large object marked, _Mass Effect Relay_

"That's this systems mass relay" she replied, moving beside him to get a better look, Revan noted that her posture was still very guarded, as if she was ready for him to attack again at any moment.

Ignoring the commanders attitude for the moment he instead voiced his questions "And what is a mass relay?" she gave him a very odd look then, as though he was crazy. He guessed that these relays must be common knowledge, so why hadn't he ever heard of them? What the hell was going on!

"We use them to almost instantly jump between star systems."

"You require a device that massive the achieve hyperspace travel?" the idea seemed ludicrous, almost every ship could be fitted with a hyperdrive

"Hyperspace?" asked the Commander, arching an eyebrow "wait…is that like FTL?"

"If you mean faster than light, then yes." Revan looked back at the galaxy map and stared at it. Something was very wrong here. The force was wrong, the technology was wrong, the damn galaxy itself was wrong!

"Well we do have an FTL drive, as do most ships but using those it would take years, even centuries to travel between star systems. The drives are used for travel within systems" Revan nodded, so their hyperspace capabilities were also nowhere near what he was used to.

He continued studying at the map, his brain was racing to try and solve this puzzle. He was convinced that he had not simply jumped to some forgotten corner of the galaxy; this map covered the entire galaxy. But it was not his galaxy.

Revan froze, was that it? Was it really that ridiculous? Was it also that simple? It certainly would explain…well everything. He had already asked the Commander about the Jedi and Sith, both words meant nothing to her and she genuinely did not appear to know who he was.

Their technology was far different from his own. As ludicrous as it was it was the only thing that made sense, cross galaxy travel was theoretically possible, but it had never been achieved to his knowledge.

"Commander" he said softly, she was probably going to think him mad "I am not from this galaxy"

"Excuse me?" he saw her turn to face him but he continued staring at the map.

"This map is completely different from where I come from. No planets are the same; your technology is even different. Where I come from we could travel across the galaxy in a matter of days with a hyperdrive that a simple freighter would be equipped with" he turned to face her now and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the doubtful look on her face.

"How can you possibly expect me to believe that?" she crossed her arms and stared at him hard, eyes searching him, trying to glean any details from it. It was an impossible task because of his clothing, which was part of the reason he always hid his features.

"I assume it is a fact here that there are other galaxies?" he asked, he really hoped that was common knowledge; it seemed likely they would know that, given their level of technology. The Commander nodded and he continued "it is clear that in this galaxy you have not discovered how to travel to another galaxy. The same is true in mine."

Revan was smiling behind his mask now, he was just glad to have finally come up with an explanation of what was going on. "In my galaxy I had just developed an experimental hyperdrive engine that was supposed to be far faster than current models. I personally tested the device and my terminal could not even calculate the speeds I traveled at. The drive overloaded and destroyed my ship, which is where you found me. I now find myself in a strange place where none of the technology or planets are the same. Tell me commander what would be your explanation?"

The Commander was silent; he could see her processing his words. She did not reply though, instead it was a female voice that sounded artificial "Commander I believe that there may be merit to Revan's claims" he hadn't realized he was being monitored by computer, although the fluxuations in the voice made him suspect it was actually an AI "the power surge I detected earlier was likely the arrival of Revan's ship. The level of power registered higher than any ever thought possible. Not even the mass relays do not produce that much power upon activation. In fact estimates of their true power is not even a fraction of what Revan's vessel emitted."

"You really believe him EDI?" the Commander still didn't take her eyes off of him

"The theory of cross galaxy travel is a question of distance, while it would be impossible to reach a galaxy with our current FTL speeds. It is possible that a device of enough power could achieve the required speeds, while I have no way to be certain as the ship was completely destroyed. The possibility does exist, Shepard"

As much as Revan did not like being monitored he was, at this moment at least, thankful for the AI's input. He felt the Commander wouldn't be so easily persuaded though. If he really was in a different galaxy then what did he do? How was he supposed to get back?

These people did not have the technology to do it. So what was he supposed to do? Suddenly his life in his own galaxy didn't seem so lonely, at least there he knew people. Had a purpose, what did he have now?

There were possibilities of course, his powers always gave him options. If he really wanted to he could probably kill everyone on this ship, or even bend most of them to his will. But what then? What would he do? Try and conquer this galaxy? What was the point? Power for powers sake had never interested him.

His whole reason for attacking the Republic was because he wanted to make it strong. He had wanted to prepare them, to make them strong enough to resist the true Sith. It had been his dream; it had become his whole purpose in life. What did he have now?

All Revan had now was power and no reason to use it. He almost laughed. Malak or any of the other Sith would not have minded this situation. They would have used their power to sow chaos and havoc, build their own empire. But Revan was not them, he had never truly been Sith, he had never fully given into the darkside. So what was he?

He should have felt a weight lift some his shoulders; all his responsibilities were suddenly gone. The troubles of the galaxy were no longer his. The final orders he issued would ensure that the Republic was made stronger. Even if it wasn't him finishing the job, would still help prepare them for what was to come.

The order would have been immediately sent to HK47 and Canderous. The order was very clear. Canderous would assume control of all Sith forces. HK was to eliminate Malak and all others who opposed the Mandalorians command. His apprentice was the last person Revan wanted to seize control. His former friend had given over to the darkside fully, reveling in its power. The man had become a merciless brute. Burning and slaughtering entire planets for the sake of it. He had never understood Revan's plan, his vision, the fool just wanted power for the sake of having it.

Truthfully Revan had been close to killing him anyway, he would never let Malak take power, that would spell ruin for the Republic. He was confident that his trusty assassin droid would be able to take care of Malak, after all he had been primarily built to eliminate Jedi, plus he was sure Canderous would help in killing his former apprentice; the gruff Mandalorian never had liked that tall bastard. If all went according to plan a direct confrontation wouldn't even be necessary, they had rigged Malak's flag ship to self-destruct in a moment's notice.

Canderous would be a good man to take control of his forces. He had met the Mandalorian during the war where he had defeated his people; he had been one of Mandalore's guards. After the battle the Mandalorian had approached Revan and pledged his service. While at first he had been cautious of accepting a former enemy in his ranks, the man had become the only living person that Revan trusted.

His order would be carried out, he had no doubt about that, they had been planning for a contingency plan if Revan ever died or disappeared. He trusted Canderous to fulfill his vision, so by all rights his galaxy would be prepared for the Sith. So why did it feel like the weight had gotten even more crushing? Perhaps it was-

"Hey, you okay?" Revan was snapped from his thoughts by the Commanders voice. He turned to face her; the surprise he felt from hearing actual concern in her voice was doubled when he saw it written on her features, softening them from the glare she usually gave him, even if it was only for a second.

"I…Commander may I have some time alone? There is a lot for me to consider"

"Only if you promise not to go attacking everyone again"

"I admit that was very unnecessary of me, and I apologize for that. I promise that I mean no harm…I simply need to think"

"You can have the compactor room for now. And EDI will be monitoring you at all times"

"I understand commander, thank you" he couldn't blame her for treating him with suspicion; he was actually surprised she wasn't going to have him locked up, or restrained. She was a very interesting woman…

Revan headed to the elevator and rode it down. He had much to consider. He had gone from being the lord of his own Sith Empire, the most feared man in an entire galaxy, and now he was no one. He was just a man with strange powers in a strange galaxy.

Although this galaxy did have its own strange powers. These biotics that the Commander had used were definitely an interesting development, and a very perplexing one. His force sense should have warned him of the danger of the Commanders biotic powered attacks, but he had received nothing. Every time she activated them he felt absolutely nothing, no warning. It would require further study, but for now he had bigger concerns, like what the hell he was going to do.

So much of his life had been spent fighting for the Republic, whether he was doing it as a general in their army or he was conquering it under the guise of a Sith Lord. Everything he had done was for the Republic, to protect people from true evil. While some may say that he in turn was evil for his methods, Revan had never considered himself as evil, then again most tyrants never did. Still, he believed in his vision, in what he had been doing.

But that was all gone now; his life's purpose was gone. While there was a small chance he could find a way home, he didn't want to create false hope. He would learn what he could about this galaxy, learn about their technology. Once he knew if there was any hope of him ever returning him, then he could decide on what to do, although for the life of him he had no idea what that would be.

* * *

Shepard sat in her cabin, reviewing the new dossier that the Illusive Man had just sent her. Zaeed Massani, a mercenary/ bounty hunter with a pretty fearsome reputation. While she normally wouldn't want to take a mercenary on her team she recognized that she would need experienced people to fight the Collectors. Plus Wrex had technically been a mercenary when they first met and now she trusted the Krogan with her life. She would just judge the man when she met him; she was always good at reading people.

Shepard glanced over to her second screen which displayed the security feed in the compactor room. Revan sat at the table, he was working on a portable terminal that they had brought down for him. According to EDI he had been researching the mass relays and FTL technology for the past five hours.

Shepard had been asleep for most of that time, EDI had only woken her to get permission to give him the terminal, then the AI had promised to inform her if he began looking into anything suspicious.

She was still having difficulty accepting the fact that he was from a different galaxy. The fact that the AI had stated that it was technically possible did help to alleviate some of her skepticism. It was still crazy though.

She was massively curious about the man though, especially about the powers he had. The display in the compactor room had been impressive; he lifted everything in the room without moving or even looking at the objects. He had also healed her, and likely himself as though it were simple.

Then there were the powers he had used during their fight. When he had punched her in the gut it felt like...well a punch from a Krogan hurt less than what Revan had delivered, it had driven all the air from her and knocked her flat. She had summoned every ounce of her biotic power to slam into him.

She had always been very gifted in biotic slams, the training academy actually had to adjust their scales for power grading after some of her tests. She wasn't very skilled with other powers but no one would ever challenge her charge power. Not even a Krogan could match her; Wrex had been extremely surprised by that fact when she had knocked him flat during a sparring match. Of course when they fought without biotics she had to rely on speed to fight the scared Krogan and not the brute strength of her charge.

When she had hit Revan with her charge she had hoped that it would end the fight, but then he had blasted her back with his invisible powers. She had smashed into the crates with such force that she cracked her ribs on the hard metal, she was pretty sure that's how her shoulder got dislocated as well.

If the crew hadn't arrived when they did she was certain that he would have kicked the shit out if her even more. Shepard also suspected that the man had been holding back during their fight. She didn't have proof but the man just bled power, it was almost as if radiated from him and seeped into the air. His stride was strong and confident, but she couldn't see any arrogance in his stride, one look and despite all the clothing that hid his features, it was apparent that he was a very deadly opponent.

Another quick glance at the security camera showed Revan still at his seat. What was she going to do about him? He had attacked her crew for no real reason at all, although something about what he said struck her as odd, he had said that in his galaxy no one would have helped him if they had found him like she had.

"_I can't remember the last time anyone had my best interests in mind"_ Shepard thought back on the words, they had surprised her at the time and she sympathized with them, that is what life used to be like for her. That had helped in her decision to not kill him, that and the facts that he had hadn't killed any of her crew and he had surrendered when he probably didn't need to.

She couldn't imagine what it would feel like to be in his situation, taken away from everything and everyone you know and love. Dammit she had been gone for two years and everything was already different enough. To be thrown into another galaxy out of the blue…well that would suck. That was the only other moment of brief compassion she had for the man, after he had explained where he was from he just stared at the galaxy map. She could only imagine the things going through his head, she knew that she would have been a wreck, and for a moment she had felt sorry for him. Then she remembered he had attacked them.

Honestly the only reason she was hesitating to help was because he had attacked first, otherwise she wouldn't have hesitated to help Revan out. But now she was questioning everything about him. If his first instinct was to attack could she really trust him?

Shepard sighed and rubbed her face. God this was getting too complicated way too quickly. Maybe she should just dump Revan on Omega and be rid of him, then she could focus on her mission.

She really considered doing it, she really did, but before she could continue too long with that thought, she was interrupted

"Commander, Revan is requesting to come up to speak with you." Said EDI. She instantly looked over to the security camera; he was no longer at his seat. Filtering through the feeds she found him standing in the elevator.

"Let him come up" she answered. Shepard quickly made sure the pistol on her desk was in easy reach. She was curious as what Revan could want. After their fight he had seemed…decent, for lack of a better word, but there was still something odd about him.

"Come in" she called as there was a knock on her door. Spinning her chair around she watched as Revan walked in, still wearing his mask "before you say anything" she said quickly "take that mask off. I won't have another conversation with you unless I can see your eyes" she didn't trust people who hid their faces, the obvious exception being the Quarians, because they had no choice.

Revan didn't move for a moment before he reached up and pulled down his hood, then lifted free the red and black helmet. Shepard instantly took in his features. He had strong features, his face was covered in thick black stubble, and he had long black hair that was combed back so it stayed out of his eyes. His eyes were an intense steel grey, a scar curved down under his left eye for about two inches.

"Apologies commander, I am not used to taking it off" that struck her as odd. Personally she could never wait to get her helmet off, but then she supposed some soldiers were more comfortable in armor.

"So what did you want?" she asked, they may as well get right to the point. She wanted to deal with this problem so she could focus on her mission.

"Well I have been looking into your technology. Those mass relays are an interesting device. But the main thing I learned is that with this galaxies level of technology it would be impossible for me to construct a device capable of taking me home." his expression was still hard as he spoke and his solid voice never wavered. In fact the only time she could remember hearing any real emotion in his voice was annoyance.

"Are you certain?" although if that technology did exist she probably would have heard of it.

"Positive. Your FTL drives are a hundred times weaker than our average hyperdrive" was his technology really so superior to their own? She quickly shook those thoughts from her head, that didn't matter right now.

"For what it's worth, I am sorry. I can't imagine what it's like." Despite getting off to a bad start she really did mean it, no matter her personal feelings he was in a bad situation.

"Thanks. But this leaves me at a loss. I know very little about this galaxy, its inhabitants, its customs. It is very different from my own."

"So what will you do?"

"Well that depends on you Commander"

"On me?" was he seriously asking to join her? Yes she did need help but…well she didn't know if she could trust this man.

"When I was…asking your doctor questions she mentioned that you are investigating attacks on human colonies, I would know the details."

"Why?" she asked flatly

"Because for the first time in my life I have no purpose. I would have one again" that seemed pretty reasonable; hell the man didn't even have a job he could keep himself busy with. Although judging by the way he fought she doubted he would be content as a bar tender.

Shepard considered his request for a moment, should she tell him? His powers would be incredibly helpful, but there was still the trust issue. Maybe she should tell him, tell him everything and see his reaction. It would certainly be amusing to see if he joined the council and declared her mad.

"A race called the Collectors is abducting entire human colonies in a section of space called the Terminus systems. It is outside the jurisdiction of the Alliance and the Council so it is not being actively investigated." Shepard watched him carefully while she spoke, so far his hard expression didn't change, so she went further "however I believe that they are actually agents of a race of machines called the Reapers. These machines invade the galaxy every fifty thousand years and exterminate all technologically advanced sentient life."

The only reaction that she got was a very feint tilt of the head, but Revan said nothing and waited for her to continue. Did he really believe her?

"They tried to begin this cycle of extinction two years ago. But I and my crew stopped them. Now they are locked in dark space waiting to return. I believe that the Collectors are somehow planning on bringing the Reapers through."

Revan was silent, almost too silent. Her mind instantly remembered his powers and she glared at him, resisting the urge to grab the pistol on her desk "You better not be reading my mind" she growled

"I wasn't. As I said your will is very strong. It would take a considerable effort on my part to break try and read your thoughts. In any case I believe you" his tone was still completely level, that combined with his serious stare made Shepard laugh.

"Are you serious?" she really didn't know why she was laughing, maybe it was the stress, or maybe it was just the idea of believing her crazy story really was funny, because it really was crazy.

"I have no reason not to believe you. You do not strike me as someone who would tell a grand lie. Plus you really have nothing to gain by lying to me." That was a fair point "so Commander I would offer you my services. This galaxy is in danger and I would do what I can to protect it."

"Why?" it was all she could ask. Why in the hell would someone not only believe her story but then offer to help her? What could he possibly hope to gain by helping her?

"That is a very long story. Suffice it to say my galaxy is also under threat from an invader. I took it upon myself to prepare the Republic for the coming invasion. This may not be my home Commander, but I would not see your galaxy suffer from this evil."

Shepard was silent for a few moments. Was he telling the truth? Did he really understand how she felt? From his words it sounded like he at least sympathized with her and her cause, enough to take it up himself. But she still couldn't help but wonder if he was being honest.

"I don't know if I can trust you" she said flatly "you have really given me no good reason to. I know almost nothing about you. How do I know you weren't just some murdering asshole in your galaxy?" Revan shrugged as he answered

"You don't know. But frankly can you afford to turn down my help? It sounds like you are up against some pretty monumental odds. My powers in the force, my skill as a warrior and general would be a tremendous aid to you." He sounded so sure of himself, he did not doubt anything he said, but she wasn't going to accept a total stranger into her ranks. No matter how confident he was.

"That doesn't change anything. I won't allow a total unknown free roam aboard my ship, nor would I trust you to watch my back."

"What do you want from me?" he snapped "I am offering you my aid! Why would you turn that down?" She was surprised by the sudden change on tone; his eyes narrowed into a glare, his jaw clenched.

"I want to know something about you! How the hell do you expect me to trust you after the introduction you made? I know nothing about you, how could I not question your motivations? You attacked my crew, for no good reason! You forced Chakwas to answer your questions by fucking with her head! Why the hell should I trust you!" She was yelling at him now, the fact that he was almost demanding that she should trust him was infuriating! What kind of arrogant prick could possibly think he could attack her people and then she would welcome him with open arms?

"Dammit how many times must I apologize for that? I did not kill a single person when it would have been a simple matter to slaughter your whole crew!" Revan growled at her, his shoulders squared and she could see his cold, hard demeanor become one of anger

"And that is supposed to make me feel better? Just because you say you're sorry doesn't undo what happened!"

"I can't change what already happened, so what the fuck do you want! It seems like I have committed some kind of sin that I can never be forgiven for!" Shepard paused at his words, maybe he was right? Could she ever really forgive him? "As far as I can see it I attacked two people on this whole ship, you and the man in the armory. I healed the both of you after, so ask yourself, is it really so unforgivable that I made a fucking mistake?"

Shepard took a minute to consider his words. If she did look at this with purely logic then Revan was correct. Everything he had tone he had technically fixed and he had not harmed Chakwas, apart from making her uneasy. But she could not look at it like that, even though she had not grown that close to the Cerberus crew, they were still under her command, and she could not easily forgive what he had done.

"I don't know" she said flatly "even if I could forgive it that still can't make me trust you"

"Well then don't trust me! It's a weakness anyway." That got her attention, he said the past part with such conviction, she instantly knew that he firmly believed that statement "I am not asking for your trust. Simply use me and my abilities to defend your galaxy."

"I would never work with someone unless I trusted them" she spoke the words automatically, as they left her mouth she realized how false they were. She didn't trust Cerberus and yet she was working with them, she still didn't trust Miranda or Jacob, and yet she was willing to go out on the field with them at her side.

"Bullshit. I know you don't trust Cerberus, the doctor told me. So why can you work with a terrorist organization but no me?" Shepard cursed to herself as he called her out. It was pretty hypocritical of her. On the grand scheme of things Cerberus had done way worse things than what she was holding against Revan.

So why couldn't she bring herself to accept his offer? It shouldn't be about simple trust; he had already pointed that out. Maybe it's because he was so willing to help her and his reasons were completely unknown. At least she knew Cerberus's motivations. The Collectors were targeting humans specifically, and the Reapers threatened everything. She could use that, it was something she could work with.

Revan was a total enigma though. He came from another galaxy and all of the sudden is trying to pledge himself to her fight? It didn't make sense. Maybe she had gone too long with people refusing to believe about the Reapers, but it still didn't sit well with her.

"Because I don't know anything about you! You claim to be from another galaxy, the first thing you do after waking up is attack my crew. I tell you about the Reapers and the Collectors and you jump to offer me your help? How the hell can I trust your motivations? What reason could you possibly have to save this galaxy? At least I know Cerberus's motivations, I can use that, work with it. But I know nothing about you, not what you want nor why you are doing this. Refuse to tell me anything about yourself Revan and you will never earn my trust."

She was glaring at the man; having finally vented all her frustrations about this man she did feel slightly better. He had given her no reason to trust him, or even his motivations. She would never work with someone who she knew nothing about, and if Revan refused to tell her anything then she would never accept his help.

* * *

Revan was glaring back at the Commander. Was she really demanding that he reveal everything about himself to her? What right did she have to demand anything of him? He was offering his aid freely and she had the gall you demand reasons from him?

Motivations should not matter. If this woman truly was fighting a war against such a terrible foe then she should not be so picky about her allies. Trust was completely unnecessary; it was not required in battle. In fact it was better to not trust your allies, then you could never be taken by surprise should they choose to betray you.

Was this woman really this foolish? That she would put her need for trust ahead of saving a galaxy? Perhaps she was not worthy of his help after all.

During his hours studying this galaxies technology he had also been thinking about the Commander. There was something strange about her; he knew that the force was trying to tell him something about her. If she had just been an average person then he would not have given her a second thought.

Revan really wished that the force was a lot more straightforward and could just tell him plainly what it was trying to say. It worked in ways that no one could understand, and right now that fact infuriated him.

No matter what the force may have been trying to tell him, Revan still couldn't get over his own feelings towards the Commander right now. If she wouldn't accept his help could he really trust her to save this galaxy?

If he really wanted to fight against the Reapers and the Collectors then he could strike out on his own. True this galaxy was foreign to him, but he was a smart and resourceful man, he was confident that he could make it on his own.

Yet here he was, trying too hard to gain the approval of this woman. WHY? He wanted to scream in fury, this made no sense! To hell with this! She could turn down his help; he would find his own way, like he always had.

"You have no right to demand anything from me. You helped me. I admit that I wronged you, but I tried to make up for that. Dammit I offered to help you protect your galaxy from this threat you fear so much. You want to refuse my help? Fine." He glared at the woman "you said we are nearing Omega, when we land I will leave." The Commander stared at him for a long moment

"Fine" she said, her voice devoid of any emotion and her face was still set in the firm glare she usually gave him. Without another word Revan turned and left the cabin, heading back down one level he moved to the armory and began retrieving his items.

He had not had to prove himself to anyone for a very long time, in fact since he could remember he was always surprising his teachers and comrades with his abilities. But here this woman dared to question whether he was trust worthy? What right did she have?

Just because he could sense something odd about it didn't mean he was going to bend over backwards to try and please her. He had nothing to prove, not to himself, not to her, not to anyone. He was stuck in this galaxy and so he would do what he always did. He would fight to save it and not give a damn what people thought about him.

**Omega Station**

Revan stared down the dirty, crowded streets, filled with alien species he did not recognize. He did not know where he was going; right now he did not care.

He had left the ship the moment it touched down, the Commander had come down to see him out, the only thing she had said was a warning "Don't do anything stupid." Revan hadn't even bothered to respond, he was still infuriated with the woman.

Someone foolish enough to turn down an ally as powerful as him was someone he would never put himself under the command of. She was so damn hung up on whether or not she could trust him that she refused to see the larger picture; it was incredibly short-sighted and foolish. War required many hard decisions, it required risks and it appeared that she was not willing to make them.

For now his goal was simple, he would try to learn about this galaxy, he would try to find out if this threat was real and if it was as bad as the Commander claimed. He knew that the force would guide him, and now hopefully that he was out of the Commanders presence it would give him valuable information rather than some cryptic impossible to understand feelings.

Normally Revan would have trusted in those feelings that the force was giving him without any hesitation but this was different, and he knew exactly why. She was too much like HER. The force had given him similar a urging before and it had led him to experience the worst pain he could possibly imagine, it still haunted him, scarred him. He wouldn't let that happen again, he couldn't take it. Hopefully the force would show him another way forward. It was unfortunate at the moment Revan forgot just how stubborn the force could be.

* * *

**Okay I want to start by saying that this chapter was REALLY difficult for me to write, I don't really know why, but I was up all night and spent almost all of today trying to get it right. This is actually my third version of the chapter.**

**I wanted to try and reinforce the feeling that Revan is a real person, he has doubts, he makes mistakes, and just like everyone else he can make rash decisions based on his personal feelings or biases.**

** I really hope you all like it!**

**Now I would like to address some reviews**

**First of all I want to thank people for their reviews, as I said I really do appreciate input and destructive criticism! And I am glad most of you seem to be liking the story!**

**So a few people seem quite upset that Revan didn't seem to be powerful enough and didn't just kick the shit out of everyone. So if you read carefully he actually does mention that he is holding back his powers because he doesn't want to kill anyone. Also he DID just barely survive a crash, he was thrust into a strange new universe and the force is in a very strange state, so I think it is reasonable I didn't put him at full power. A special thank you to R3v4nCh15t for bringing that point up! You have my thanks, your words of support are very much appreciated! ****  
**

**Also thank you to FinlandNative, Arselbengt, HEXER, and mwjen. I truly do appreciate the kind words!**

**Kaioo: Trust me I know what Starkiller can do, and Revan is better than him, it will be proven later on ;)**

**Okay also some people have brought up the issue of Revan deflecting bullets with his lightsabers. I have done research into the matter and to my understand a lightsaber would actually vaporize a bullet, their properties make them interact with solid objects, but an electromagnetic object (like a blaster bolt) is deflected. However the problem is that the guns in mass effect fire at much greater velocities than in SW, at least in my mind. Revan IS going to be able to defend against them with his lightsabers but it will be very difficult because they move so fast.**

**Some people also showed concern over how he was taken by surprise in his fight with Shepard, as he is very gifted in battle precognition, I do realize this. But as I stated he is not at full power. I also explained in this chapter the other reason why he couldn't sense Shepards attacks. My idea about biotics have changed slightly, I know see them as something that the force cannot sense this is due to the Element Zero used to create the powers. Before anyone goes saying this is crazy remember that their are materials in the SW galaxy that can negate force powers.  
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**Okay so I think I have addressed the biggest issues that people had. I hope I have made things more clear.**

**So the next chapter will have a good amount of action, while I cannot guarantee a lot of Revan action in chapter five, I GUARANTEE that you will finally get to see some of his true power in chapter six (He is going to kick some serious ass) this may happen in chapter five if I decide to merge the two. **

**That's it for me! I hope you all like this. **

**Again reviews are always appreciated, I do prefer constructive and helpful criticism but I guess rude criticism does have it's merit too, ha ha (I am a drama student so I am used to it) **


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay so I am doing my note at the beginning for this chapter.**

**First of all I really wanted to apologize for how long this chapter took to upload.**

**Some REALLY shitty stuff has gone on in my life in the past few days and it screwed with my writing severely. I basically spent three days drunk trying to deal with it (I know its not very healthy)**

**Anyways so I have lost the person who was pretty much acting as my Beta Reader. So now it is just me writing this story without any real input from anyone else.**

**I will try, and I hope that non of my personal stuff will affect my writing. **

**I just wanted to let you all know in case this chapter seems a bit off.**

**This should be the longest delay for chapters though, I have already started working on the next chapter and I am feeling good about it. This chapter was difficult to write, mostly just because of my personal life.**

**This chapter (especially Revans bit) is mostly a set up to the next chapter. I was trying to explore Shepards real reasons why she turned down Revan's help, and although it seems like a simple reason I feel like it works, especially with how it ties into her past and why she feels so terrible about it.**

**I will also go back to addressing reviews directly next chapter. I have been reading them! And I am listening to everything you are all saying. I just dont want this note to get crazy long. But I have received a lot of kind words and I really do want to thank you all for them!**

**The one thing I will address is concern over Shepard's previous reasons for turning down Revan considering all she does in this game is recruit people she doesnt know. I understand this and the reason I give in this chapter will hopefully help to explain it. I hope it makes sense to you all and doesnt just feel like a really weak plot device. I have had this reason in mind the entire time, I just hope I explained it well enough. It will be explored a bit further in other chapters.**

**Anyway thats enough ranting. I hope you all still like how this is going!**

**Next chapter you will FINALLY get to see Revan in action as he unleashes his powers against the poor souls he chooses to stand against. **

* * *

Shepard resisted the urge to rub her temples as they walked. The day had barely begun and she already had a headache, and it wasn't because of the shitty club music she could already hear coming from Afterlife.

"I just think it was a very rash decision to send him away. There was much he could have offered us" said the reason for her headache. Shepard didn't even bother looking at Miranda when she replied.

"You have said that a hundred times Miranda. Trust me I am fully aware of your position on the matter. Can we please just drop it for now?" She held in her sigh, god she really hoped the woman would drop the topic soon. The decision to turn down Revan's offer may have been rash but she still believed it was the correct one.

Shepard shook her head, trying to force the pounding in her head away. It didn't matter anymore, he was gone and she would never see him again. At least she hoped that was the case.

She did feel a little bit bad about essentially just dumping him on this station. After all he was in a completely foreign galaxy, knowing nothing about the technology, species, customs and cultures. Although he did have his strange powers to help him out, he would probably be fine. She just hoped he wouldn't cause trouble.

She pushed Revan out of her mind and focused instead on her mission. She moved past the line and climbed the steps to the club, ignoring the annoyed shouts of those still seeking to gain entrance. Shepard walked through the door without breaking her stride; the bouncer muttered that she could go in, as if he could have stopped her.

The only reason that she was even bothering to see this Aria person was because she apparently had information on Mordin and Archangel. She didn't particularly relish the thought of asking a crime lord for help. But then again probably everyone on Omega who could give her information was likely a criminal, so she may was well get it from the top dog.

The door to the interior of the club opened and Shepard was immediately blasted by noise, extremely loud and unpleasant noise. God her head hurt. Trying to ignore her surroundings she looked around for Aria. It didn't take long for her to spot a platform that overlooked the rest of the club, an armored Batarian stood by the stairwell leading up.

For a moment she considered putting on the helmet strapped to her waist, it would probably help with the noise, and although the blood dragon armor was very well made, she did find that the helmet restricted her vision. During battle it would be fine as the protective benefits outweighed the slight vision impairment, honestly it wasn't that bad but outside of battle it just annoyed her too much. She had also just never found helmets comfortable.

She quickly marched across the club floor to the stairwell; the Batarian seemed to be expecting her as he simply jerked his head up the stairs. When she got to the top she was immediately met with the sight of five guards, four Batarian and one Turian, and in the middle on a plush looking couch sat an Asari with a very indifferent look on her face.

Shepard began moving forward "Aria?" she didn't make it far before every guard trained a weapon on her

"That's far enough" said Asari, yeah she was definitely the leader. Shepard stared at the Turian who had a Carnifex only inches from her face. She heard Jacob and Miranda pulling out their own weapons. Shepard made no move; she simply glared at the Turian as a nearby Batarian put away his weapon and began scanning her. Her emerald eyes never left the Turian's dark brown ones. _Garrus's were prettier_.

"Get that gun out of my face" she growled, if this bastard wanted a fight she would give him one. She was not about to be intimidated by some thug, no matter who they worked for. She had stared down a pissed off Wrex, this guy was nothing. The gun didn't waver, the guy had balls…or whatever the Turian equivalent was, she would have to ask Garrus when she finally got the courage to send him a message.

"They're clean" said the Batarian. At his words Aria nodded to her guards and the weapons were lowered. Shepard glared at the Turian a second longer before looking at the Asari

"What was that for?" she asked

"You are a Spectre who was declared dead for two years. Can't be too careful" she supposed that was a fair point, anyone could have assumed her identity during that time. She liked to think that the council would have put a stop to that though, purely for security reasons of course.

"So I am told you are the person to talk to for information" she didn't want to waste any time, there had already been too much of that.

"Depends what you are looking for." Replied the Asari in an uninterested tone, she turned her head to look at something going on below. Shepard suppressed another sigh, was she really trying this hard to make it clear that she was the one with all the power?

"I just want to know where I can find a Salarian doctor named Mordin Solus and some mercenary called Archangel. Tell me that and I will leave you alone and be off your station as soon as I find them, something I think we would both like." This woman was either going to tell her or she wasn't, there was no point in treading carefully. She would get the information she needed, one way or another.

"An interesting pair," said Aria, still not looking back up to her. Shepard was beginning to lose her patience, before she could speak again the Asari turned back around. "To find Mordin you will have to take a shuttle into the quarantine area. We have a bit of a plague going on right now, last I heard Mordin had set up a clinic to try and help."

Shepard raised her eyebrows slightly at the information. A plague? Those were pretty uncommon these days; the closest thing to a plague now was bio engineered weapons. Then again Omega didn't exactly have state of the art medical facilities. There were a lot of species packed in together so she supposed a plague wasn't that ridiculous.

"And Archangel?" Shepard almost laughed when she realized that she was going to recruit two mercenaries to her cause on this station. She was just glad Revan wasn't around to bring up the hypocrisy in that. Of course she could always counter that at least the mercenaries were being paid, probably a considerable sum too. While that wasn't exactly the best motivator at least it was one, it kept them invested in her mission. She would still keep an eye on them but at least she knew why they were fighting.

Revan had just given her some bullshit about wanting a purpose in life and then refused to elaborate. That sent off all her warning alarms. How could she trust someone who refused to reveal anything about themselves? People only did that when they had something to hide.

Dammit she knew how easily he could easily destroy all of her arguments. She was being a hypocritical ass, in the back of her mind she did know that. Her truly honest reasons for denying Revans offer of assistance was quite simple, but she could never admit it out loud, because it made her an even bigger ass.

She didn't trust his powers, they were unnatural, they were wrong, and they were far too powerful. Dammit biotics experienced a lot of stupid superstitions and discrimination. It had gotten better now but even when she was young it was really bad. Dammit she could remember what it had been like when she had first realized her powers. All the god damn suspicion and hate!

So how could she possibly tell Revan that she wouldn't accept his help because he had some weird powers that freaked her out? But for fucks sake he could read people's minds! Or make them tell the truth! What if he could control what people thought or did? She couldn't take that risk; she couldn't take that chance of him manipulating her crew like that. ESPECIALLY when she didn't know his motivations.

Shepard silently cursed herself for letting her thoughts drift back to Revan. She really needed to stop doing that. Of course the reason she couldn't stop thinking about him was because she felt like an ass for doing what she did. Dammit how could she have turned him away when she had been in such a similar position earlier in her life? People turning her out because she had strange powers that scared them, it had hurt, hell it had almost meant her death.

Shepard sighed to herself and forced the terrible memories away, she silently berated herself for even letting them affect her. It seemed she couldn't do anything right lately. She could only think on all the things she had done wrong, the times she had been stupid or fucked up

"I don't know where Archangel is actually," said Aria "he has been running around Omega for quite some time, pissing off the major mercenary groups so he isn't exactly broadcasting his location." Shepard was actually thankful foe the crime lord from tearing her from her thoughts. She quickly tried to focus her mind once more.

This would make her job a lot harder, how was she supposed to recruit someone if she couldn't find them? Of course there always was the possibility that Aria was lying, it wouldn't surprise her.

"You have anything I can go on?" she asked, maybe the Asari would at least give her a clue.

"Sorry, nothing for you. But tell you what; if I hear anything then I will let you know." Shepard doubted that, but just nodded before replying,

"Thanks." And with that she turned and left the platform, she would get EDI to run a search for the mercenary; in the meantime she could focus on locating her two other recruits.

"So who are we going to find first?" asked Jacob

"Mordin." She replied instantly, it was the best choice "I want him working on a countermeasure for the Collectors right away. After we get him I will meet up with Zaeed and make sure he is all set to go. By then hopefully someone will have information on where to find Archangel."

"A good plan," replied Miranda "I will tell EDI to contact Zaeed and arrange a rendezvous after we acquire the professor." Shepard nodded in response and continued towards her goal.

She needed to get her team together as quickly as possible. Every moment she wasted was another opportunity the Collectors had to attack another colony, it was more lives lost, and it was another failure on her shoulders. She would not allow that to happen, she would not fail anyone ever again.

* * *

This place was as shitty as the Taris undercity. Revan wound his way through the crowds, getting a fair amount of odd looks as he moved. He supposed his clothing did differ highly from this galaxies norm.

Ignoring the looks he readjusted the pack over his shoulder and continued on his way. He had quickly discovered that in this galaxy the people heavily relied on what was called an "omni-tool" it was definitely an interesting bit of technology. He had used the force to persuade a local mercenary to hand his over, he had no other means of procuring one and the mercenary hadn't exactly paid for his honestly to begin with.

He had spent an hour familiarizing himself with its uses and it seemed this single item could do almost anything from working as a flashlight, to hacking security systems, or to actually being used to construct items.

The hacking portion had come in quite helpful as he quickly hacked a bank terminal and been able to get the funds he would need for basic supplies. He had also rented a small and dirty apartment in the area, he wasn't planning on staying for long so he hadn't bothered with anything too nice, of course somewhere nice probably didn't exist on this station.

Revan ignored the alien ranting about some kind of blight on the galaxy as he made his way to his apartment. While he had learned a fair amount of information about this galaxies technology during his stay on the Normandy, that was all he had learned about.

His powers in the force allowed him to easily understand and speak the multitude of alien languages that were being spoken by the different species, but he still knew nothing of the aliens themselves, or anything else about this galaxy for instance. To that end he had purchased a small terminal from a local merchant so he could continue his research. He could have done it on his omni-tool but he found it was annoying to use it for too long, he preferred a full console.

Right now it was his only priority, to learn all he could. Of course he had always enjoyed learning and acquiring all knowledge that he could get his hands on. It was just even more important now, given his circumstances, rather than just an insatiable desire he had.

He made it back to his apartment without incident and quickly began setting up the terminal on the heavily used coffee table. He quickly began pulling up searches on topics of interest while he also prepared himself a quick meal, damn it had been…well he didn't know exactly how long it had been since his last meal, felt like days.

Revan set his mask down beside him on the dirty couch as he ate his meal and soaked up every bit of information that he could. He smiled as he began reading, feeling that familiar sense of pleasure he got when learning.

* * *

Shepard nodded to Jacob and the broad shouldered man rounded the corner, firing his pistol at the Vorcha mercenary. Miranda quickly bolted across the courtyard and took cover behind one of the planters just before the group of mercs returned fire. Jacob ducked behind the wall with a curse as bullets smashed into the concrete.

Miranda rose and opened up with her SMG one handed, throwing a ball of biotic energy at the mercs with her free hand. Jacob tried to join her but was quickly forced back in cover. Shepard rounded the corner, readying her shotgun. She instantly activated her biotics, feeling the rush of energy as weightlessness overcame her and in an instant she had smashed into the body of a Vorcha, sending him flying back to smash against a low wall, Shepard hear the snap of bones and the merc went limp.

Before anyone could react she immediately spun and shot another merc point blank in the face. Several rounds bounced off her barriers and she rolled to the side, shooting a second merc before she had even risen. She saw another merc drop from a burst of SMG fire to the head.

"Clear!" shouted Miranda, both her and Jacob repeated the call. Shepard reloaded her shotgun and turned to her approaching squadmates

"Okay clinic should be just up ahead" her companions nodded and she led the way. Sure enough they passed the clinic sign and found themselves at a security desk where several mechs and a human were aiming weapons at her.

"Calm down!" she said quickly, the human looked a bit jumpy. Probably just a civilian. "I am here to help, I took care of all the mercs out there." The man slowly lowered his gun "is Mordin Solus inside?"

"Yes" replied the man, a bit shakily. Shepard nodded in thanks and entered the clinic.

There were dozens of patients; some didn't look too bad while others looked pretty damn close to death. She couldn't spot any clinic workers, it was clear Mordin was understaffed "Jacob, Miranda, see what you can do to help, I will go and find the professor." They didn't have a lot of medical supplies with them but maybe they could help if anyone had more physical injuries.

She could hear someone giving medical orders from a room beyond and she quickly followed the rather quick, yet broken speech. Sure enough she came into a room where a Salarian scientist in what looked like white armor was working at a console. He immediately turned at Shepard's entrance, she noted that one of his…horn things was broken and he had a long scar on his face "Professor Mordin Solus?" she asked, the Salarian looked at her for a moment

"Don't recognize you from area. Too well armed to be refugees. No mercenary uniform. Quarantine still in effect." He turned away now and began typing on a console "Here for something else? Vorcha? Crew to clean them out? Unlikely. Vorcah a symptom not a cause." The Salarian had started talking faster now and Shepard was certain he wasn't even talking to her anymore "The plague, investigating possible use as bioweapon? Too many guns, not enough data equipment. Soldiers not scientists."

He began furiously working on his omni-tool and began rambling once more. Shepard didn't let him continue, it was clear he was thinking out loud now and thinking way too fast for her to even follow anymore.

"Relax Mordin" she said, holding up her hand and stepping forward to get his attention "calm down before your head explodes. My name is commander Shepard and I am here to get your help for a very important mission."

"Mission? What mission? No. Too busy. Clinic understaffed. Plague spreading too fast. Who sent you?" Shepard stifled her laugh; she actually found the Salarians quick and fractured speech amusing

"Ever heard of Cerberus?" Mordin returned to working on his console before he answered.

"Crossed path's on occasion. Thought they only worked with humans. Why request Salarian aid?" By the tone his voice had taken she assumed the Salarian hadn't had good experiences with the organization, few people probably had, especially aliens.

"We are on a mission to take down the collectors. I need to best on my team and from the information I have on you, you are the smartest Salarian around and I need you to develop a countermeasure to help me fight against them." She saw no reason to lie to Mordin, he deserved to know exactly what she wanted and what he would be up against.

"Collectors? Interesting. Plague in slums is engineered. Collectors one of few groups with technology to design it. Our goals may be similar."

"Well that is something I can work with. So will you help me?" again she couldn't help but thinking of Revan. Dammit she wasn't even going to bother with this internal argument anymore. She didn't trust him because of his powers, she didn't care about his motives that much. She was desperate and did need all the help she could get. It seems she would be walking into hell with a crew she couldn't trust, they were highly trained however. She would have to make it work. Shit she should have just come clean from the very beginning with Revan.

But how could she? How could she turn someone away, how could she treat them the way people had once treated her? Dammit she really was a hypocrite.

"Cant. Not yet. Must stop plague first. Already have a cure. Need to distribute to environmental control center. Vorcha guarding it. Need to kill them."

Shepard nodded, she wasn't about to leave here without curing the plague anyway. And she certainly had no qualms about killing the bloodpack assholes.

"I will distribute the cure and handle the Vorcha." Almost the second she finished speaking the lights went out and emergency lighting kicked in, bathing the room in a red glow. "What the hell was that?" she demanded

"Vorcha have shut down environmental systems. Trying to kill everyone. Need to get power back on before district suffocates." There was no way in hell she was going to let that happen, she was going to tear these fucking Vorcha apart.

"I am on it" she answered, giving the Salarian a firm nod. He handed her the cure which uploaded into her medigel delivery systems.

"Also one of my assistance. Daniel. Went into Vorcha territory looking for victims. Haven't heard from him."

"I will keep an eye out for him." Mordin nodded and Shepard quickly left the room and spoke into her com "Miranda, Jacob lets get moving. Vorcha are trying to kill everyone in the district. Double time to the environmental controls!" She would not let this happen.

Shepard did a quick check of her weapons to make sure all her thermal clips were fresh and ready to go. A quick glance to her companions signaled they were ready. Readying her shotgun Shepard opened the door and quickly stormed inside. Almost immediately the Vorcha across the room turned and one of them began speaking in his harsh voice.

"Too late! We poison-" Shepard didn't let him finish, she hated these stupid rants. Activating her biotics she slammed into the speaker, throwing him back to slam into his two comrades. Three quick blasts from her shotgun easily dispatched them.

Miranda ran ahead to the large control console while Jacob began firing at Vorcha mercs on the walkways below. Shepard took cover at the balcony as fire sprayed across her position.

"Shepard you have to activate each of the environmental fan controls located on either side of the room. Inject the cure into the consoles and the plague will be cured." Spoke EDI.

Shepard turned towards where Miranda was holding off the Vorcha on the left side.

"Miranda, Jacob. Hold the reinforcements up here, I will take the right side first." She got two acknowledgements. Wasting no time she stood up from her cover, feeling the rush of her biotic field she slammed into the group of Vorcah below her. Killing one instantly she shot a second with her shotgun. The merc cried out as he died, the plasma burning through his body.

Her barriers flashed as two nearby mercs began firing on her; it took two seconds for her to shoot each of them in the chest. The doors to the fan room opened and two more Vorcha charged out, one forced her into cover with automatic fire.

Shepard dived behind the pillar, her half charged barriers barely holding. It wouldn't have been bad if when she spun out from the cover flames washed over her entire body. She could feel the heat in her suit building as both her barriers and armor struggled to protect her from the flames. She could feel sweat beginning to pour down her face, she couldn't see through the mass of flames that engulfed her.

Gritting her teeth as the heat mounted, feeling the skin on her arm begin to burn. Shepard rolled to the side, exiting the flames for a brief second, but that was all she needed. She immediately shot the flamethrower wielding Vorcha in the face, one of the three plasma shots striking the tank over the mercs shoulder, instantly detonating it.

Shepard was sprayed in the blood and bones of the now very dead Vorcha. She wasted no time in shooting his now wounded comrade. She could hear her comrades fighting behind her so she wasted no time in running to the fan control and injecting the cure.

"Reinforcements!" called Miranda over the com.

"On my way" replied Shepard quickly, bolting from the room.

Jacob and Miranda were taking cover behind the two pillars the guarded the ramp down. Vorcha above fired at them with rocket launchers while the ones below poured automatic fire into them while they moved closer.

"Focus fire on those launchers!" Shepard ordered running towards he comrades. She fired two rounds with her shotgun before her clip ran out. Cursing she slung it behind her waist with one hand while her other grabbed the mattock from her back.

Miranda dropped one of the rocket launches with a burst to the head before being forced back into cover. Shepard stumbled as a rocket went off just far enough away to avoid harming her.

"Krogan!" yelled Jacob. Shepard swore explosively as she looked around the corner and saw the massive red armored shape moving towards them. Only one thing to do.

"Miranda! Swap!" the brunette looked at her then at the same time they tossed their weapons at the other. Shepard caught the SMG and quickly swapped in a fresh thermal clip, she needed the faster rate of fire right now.

"Covering fire!" she hollered. Instantly her squad mates began suppressing the mercs. Miranda dropped the last rocket launcher while Jacob fired at those below. Shepard rose from cover and activated her charge.

Slamming into a Krogan was like slamming into a brick wall. Even with her above average strength charge it was still a very jarring experience. Her vision swam as she slammed into the mound of flesh and metal.

The Krogan was incredibly surprised as he was thrown to the ground, which was lucky because it made him hesitate long enough for Shepard's head to stop spinning as she unloaded half the clip into the bastards face.

She didn't have time to celebrate her victory as she staggered back when bullets slammed into her barriers. They quickly sparked and died and she let out a sharp cry of pain as a bullet passed between her armor and sunk into her shoulder, hot blood began running down her shoulder.

Her instincts took over and she immediately dived for cover, spraying fire towards the mercs as she did. Gritting her teeth Shepard reloaded. Her armor systems had stopped the bleeding but it still stung like hell.

She saw the glow of biotics as both Jacob and Miranda tossed their attacks in unison. Understanding the opportunity she came from cover and fired at the weakened and dazed enemies. This time she had seen the flamethrower wielding asshole and sent several rounds into his tank, blowing it up and killing the remainder of his comrades.

"Clear!" called both her companions. Shepard quickly ran into the fan room and inserted the cure. They had done it. A smile lit up her face as EDI confirmed that it was working.

All she had been able to focus on lately was how she had fucked up recently, like with Revan, or how she had messed up in the past. She knew it wouldn't last but right now she let this win feel good.

* * *

Revan stared at the screen and took in all the information. After roughly six hours of non-stop research his curiosity about one subject had gotten the better of him.

As much as she pissed him off and as much as she dredged things up he would rather forget, he had to admit she was…impressive. She had been an orphan on the planet earth, growing up on the streets with absolutely no family whatsoever or anyone that even cared about her.

She enlisted at eighteen and apparently scored phenomenally in every single thing that her instructors threw at her. One report had even said that she had actually broken the scale they used to measure biotic powers when she had been tested on her ability called a "biotic charge."

The commander had a flawless career throughout her life. She had received several commendations during what was called The Skyllian Blitz. She had singlehandedly held the line against the massive raider and slaver forces attacking the planet. He had found dozens of accounts from officers and fellow soldiers regarding her heroism, she was idolized. She was a hero.

Later she had saved a human colony from being completely destroyed. Then she had proven who was behind the attack, become the first human to join an elite force called the spectres. She had trailed him across the galaxy until eventually this Saren had attacked the citadel itself. She had followed him, killed the traitor and then saved the council.

Her name was cheered in the streets and humanity looked up to her as an example for all. Even some of the alien races had good things to say about her. She was a hero, he could not deny that.

She was strong in her convictions, never wavering or faltering in what she believed in, nor had she ever compromised herself. He could not find a single (credible) report where she had done something that went against her moral system.

He had watched several interviews with her and no matter what deceitful or dickish tactics the reports used, Shepard never wavered. Even when the council publicly denied the existence of the Reapers, denied the commander herself, she did not take matters into her own hands. She simply argued against them, vowed to find proof, she tried to make people listen and yet she was stone walled at every turn.

Dammit if it had been him he would have done away with this useless council. He would have MADE people see what the true threat was. Sometimes you couldn't give them a choice. Yes some people may hate you for it, but they would thank you for it later on. You would always make enemies doing what was right.

She needed to tell the rules and regulations to go to hell and simply do what was necessary. There needed to be no regard or concern for what others perceived as right or wrong. If she had really wanted to then the Commander could have used her influence and position to eliminate the opposition she face and further her own support base.

She also could have reinforced the idea of a threat. If people were not willing to believe about the Reapers then she could have created another, more believable threat, such as these Geth. They were a threat that could understand, she could have built up forces against them but instead held them back for the Reapers.

But the Commander had done none of that. She had argued her case; she had sworn to find proof. But that was all. He knew it was because her moral code prevented her from simply forcing others to accept the threat that faced them, or used deceit or other underhanded means to secure her goal. She should have not given them a choice! Dammit she should have- it didn't matter, she hadn't done anything and she wouldn't.

She would go her own way to protect others, like now. She was operating outside official channels but Revan knew she would still respect the chain. If they tried to arrest her she wouldn't stop them, like he had. Oh she would call them fools but she would not fight against the system she had fought for all her life, and always would fight for.

No she was not him; she would stick by her morals. She would not accept any compromise to who she was or how she did things, no matter what. His logical mind called her a fool, he could think of a thousand reasons why she would need to change, she couldn't defend this galaxy if she didn't. But he knew she never would. He knew because Meetra never would either.

He felt a physical pain in his chest as her face flashed in his mind. He quickly pushed the image away before he broke down. Instead he focused on his mission.

He had learned a fair bit of information, and while he would need more time it had become clear what he needed to do right now, he had only one path.

Powering off the terminal, he rose from the sofa and pushed the coffee table away, clearing a space in front of the sofa. Revan sat down on the floor, crossing his knees he closed his eyes and reached out into the force, letting it wash over his body and mind.

It had been a long time since he had been unsure of what to do, it was a foreign feeling now and he had no clue of how to deal with it. It had been troubling him from some time, but now he had realized that there was only one thing he could rely on right now. He knew that despite his reservations he needed to allow the force to show him, to tell him what he needed to do.


	6. Chapter 6

Shepard had a faint grin on her face as she left the lab. She didn't know why she found Mordin so damn entertaining but she did. He was certainly brilliant, she had confidence that he could come up with a counter measure to the collectors.

She stretched out her shoulder as she walked, it was still a bit sore but the wound had healed up nicely. Chakwas had also seen to the burn on her arm and she couldn't even feel it anymore.

Her path took her into the armory, she expected to see Jacob but surprisingly Miranda was there as well. They were both standing over a work bench, their bodies blocked her view from their work. She moved up beside Miranda to get a better look.

"What are you doing?" she asked peering at the collection of items sprawled across the large table. There were bits of what looked like armor in a deep forest green, she could pick out a chest piece, boots, gloves and a T visored helmet…it looked an awful lot like

"Is this Revan's stuff?" she blurted out before Miranda could answer

"He left without taking it so we are running tests" explained the brunette with a shrug. Damn she had completely forgotten about the belongings they had retrieved from the crashed shuttle. She felt bad about keeping it now, but also had no idea how to find him to give it back.

"Did you learn anything interesting?" she asked with a sigh, god she felt like an even bigger bitch now.

"We ran a preliminary analysis of most of the items. The armor," Miranda grabbed the green helmet "is made of a substance we cannot identify but our tests suggest that it is more durable than anything in our known galaxy. It also has an advanced computer of unknown origins to power its HUD."

Next Miranda grabbed a long three sided dagger from the table. The blade was dark grey and the pommel was white, it looked like a well-used weapon, covered in scratches and nicks, but it didn't look like any real damage had been done to the blade.

"This seems to be made of the same material as the armor, thus making it very strong." To prove her point, Miranda slammed the dagger down and it stabbed through the table to stick out of the bottom. Shepard's eyes widened slightly, damn that thing could be helpful against a Krogan… "Now as for these," Miranda pointed to another set of gauntlets, these seemed to be thicker than the others, they were still colored green but had several spikes forming along the knuckles and back hand plates, all in all they looked pretty mean.

"We don't actually know what they do, but they are emitting some kind of energy source, yet every time we put them on they just...turn off." said Jacob "they are made of the same material but we can't explain why they are thicker and look so different. Could just be simple aesthetics I suppose."

Shepard stared at the items. It was clear these items would belong to a warrior. Someone who was no stranger to battle, that seemed to fit Revans persona. Although those robes he wore seemed to be more…ceremonial or something along those lines.

"We are going to try and synthesize these materials. If we could then we could make armor of vastly superior quality, never mind if we could make enough to make a cruiser out of this." Explained Jacob

"Well just don't destroy any of it" said Shepard. Maybe she would try and track him down to at least give him back his stuff; she didn't need to keep it from him. Miranda and Jacob could run their tests hopefully give them an edge over the Collectors.

"Too bad we don't have Revan's input." Miranda muttered as she reached the door. Shepard just shook her head and headed to her cabin. She wasn't going to even bother responding to that, it had been a long few days and it seemed like she hadn't even had a single moment of down time lately.

Shepard rode the elevator up to her cabin. She let out a yawn as she stretched, she still hadn't changed out of her armor from the mission, and a shower sounded really good right about now. With practiced movements Shepard quickly removed her armor and threw it onto the sofa where she could clean it later.

Peeling off the black undersuit she turned on the water to let it warm up while she removed the rest of her clothes. Steam was already filling the bathroom by the time she had gotten out of all her clothes, when she was about to step into the water she caught her reflection in the mirror.

Her eyes immediately came to rest on the glowing orange scars that were scattered across her body. Two small ones laced up her left leg with one on her right. Her stomach was littered with scars; her fingers absently ran along the long scar on her waist line. Surprisingly the scars did not hurt.

Her fingers moved along the glowing lines covering her stomach, the center of her chest, between her breasts, along her collar bone, her forearms. Then her fingers finally touched the scars on her face. One ran along the left side of her jawline, at the start and the end of the scar was another that ran horizontal up her face to connect with a second that curved along her face, half the length of the bottom scar. A final one stretched across her forehead, just above her right eyebrow and was about the same length.

Machines, technology, that's what it was. All the cybernetic implants Cerberus had shoved into her body to bring her back from death. She had been dead, she was dead, she fucking remembered dying! That was fucked up! She could remember chocking for air, she remembered her vision going dark and feeling her entire god damn body die! So why was she standing here?

Every time she saw these scars it just reminded her that she was not supposed to be here. Her being alive was wrong. Fuck she felt wrong! She could feel the machinery inside of her; she could hear it whirring around! Of course Chakwas and Miranda had told her that was impossible.

But every time she saw her reflection or looked down to see these glowing marks, she could hear it, she could feel it! Dammit it's why she was always wearing long sleeved shirts now. Everytime she saw these god awful things she was reminded of how she shouldn't be here, of how she had died! And how she really wasn't human anymore, how she was a failure.

And these fucking scars just wouldn't go away! Apparently because of her abrupt awakening on the Cerberus station the healing process had to be aborted. Miranda said they did not have access to the technology to resume the process right now. So she was stuck with these hideous…things all over her body! Marking her out as wrong. Why wouldn't they just fucking go away!

Reboot, that was the word Miranda had used. They couldn't reboot the process. Like she was a kind of damn machine. Fuck just looking at herself it was obvious! She was a machine, or some sick twisted fucking freak of nature!

Shepard slammed a glowing blue fist into the mirror. It shattered into a thousand pieces, obliterating the image of the machine that had been staring at her.

Pain shot through her hand as glass embedded itself in her skin; she could feel the blood running down her hand. Her shoulders were heaving; her mind was a storm of emotions. Dammit what was wrong with her? Why couldn't she just- fuck why was everything so fucked up? She staggered back, hitting the wall where she fell to the ground, only vaguely aware of the water running over her.

Her whole body was shaking as everything washed over her at once and she could not stem the tide.

What had happened to her? Why was she so unsure of everything she was doing? Why was she so damn unsure of herself? She should not be here, that was why. How could anyone expect her to stop the collectors when she had already suffered the greatest failure?

She had died, she let her ship be destroyed, she let her crew be killed, and then she had allowed herself to die. How could she keep fighting after that? Fuck she didn't even know what she was thinking anymore. Her mind was broken; she couldn't control what she was thinking anymore. It was probably all because she had become some kind of fucked up machine and her stupid brain couldn't cope. Why was this happening? Dammit she needed to get a hold of herself!

This was bullshit, why the hell was she sitting on the floor whining about her life? It didn't matter, it never had. Shit she had already died so none of this mattered. If she was some kind of machine now then she would do what she had been built for. She was going to kick the living hell out of the Collectors, and then the Reapers!

Her feelings did not matter anymore, so what if she was a machine. At least she could serve a purpose; at least she could still save people. How she felt didn't matter, it didn't matter to anyone here, it didn't matter to her. Everyone just wanted her to take out the collectors, to build a team of random mercenaries and scientists. Fine, that is what she would do. She would do what she was supposed to do, because what else did a machine have?

* * *

Goddamn he was tired of this place. Zaeed threw back his drink and quickly ordered another one. Sure there were lots of contracts to be had but most of them offered to challenge at all. Besides he didn't care about any contracts apart from the one that led him to Vido.

That Illusive man had also given him so much money for working with Shepard that he would never have to work again. He was looking forward to wrapping everything up, maybe he would finally retire. Although whenever he thought about that it sounded boring as shit.

He glanced at the watch on his wrist, probably the only non-digital watch left in the galaxy. He never even bothered changing it to the local time; there were clocks everywhere now so it wasn't hard to find out. His watch told him it was just after six back home. The watch was old and had seen its share of battlefields but he loved the damn thing, sitting in the dead of silence he could sometimes hear it ticking and it always sent a shiver up his spine, he loved it. Almost as much as Jessie.

Throwing back his second drink he glanced around the bar, where the hell was Shepard anyway? They were supposed to meet today; he hoped she wasn't going to be late. This shitty music along with that Asari bitch glaring at him was getting annoying.

Aria had been pissed at him ever since he turned down that job to take out Archangel. She had wanted the vigilante eliminated before he caused too many problems. Of course he had been killing a shit load of blue suns so Zaeed had felt no need to put an end to the vigilante.

Now all the gangs had teamed up and were practically waging a full scale war against the man and it was causing problems for the queen bitch of Omega. She wanted to keep the gangs under her thumb, but to do that you needed respect. Some vigilante running around killing a bunch of those mercs didn't exactly look good.

Her only choice had been to mount Archangels head at the doors to Afterlife. But now word had gotten out that the merc groups were going after him, they had decided to deal with it on their own. So it wouldn't be surprising if they decided to deal with another of their problems on their own.

He looked up to Aria and lifted his drink to her, a grin on his face. She flipped him off and Zaeed just laughed as he threw back the drink, it's a good thing was a good combination of sexy and dangerous as hell, or else he wouldn't put up with her shit.

"Zaeed Massani?" he quickly turned at the voice, impressed that someone had actually pronounced his name right. Speaking of the perfect combination of sexy and dangerous…

The two women who stood before him were definitely a fine example of drop dead gorgeous. The first one was a tall brunette in black and gold armor; she had curves in all the right places, bloody hell she put all the dancers in here to shame. Her ice blue eyes, although nice to look at were hard and that combined with the way she carried herself told anyone who could read the signs, she was not to be fucked with.

The second woman was like her companion only amplified by about a hundred, especially in the "don't fuck with me or I will tear your throat out" department. Her flame red hair was tied up neatly in the back, likely to keep it out of her eyes and so she could still easily wear her helmet that was strapped to her waist. Her stern expression, the bloody glowing scars on her face and her hard emerald eyes only added to her intense appearance.

As much fun as soft women could be, there was something about a woman who could kill you six different ways that just made them much more alluring. The sex was usually way better too. Although from the look he was getting it was unlikely that anyone was getting in the red headed woman's pants.

"Yeah?" he asked, remembering his voice, he assumed this must be Shepard, after everything he had heard about her she definitely fit his expectations.

"I am Commander Shepard, and I am here to pick you up to come along for our mission."

"Yeah heard about your little suicide run," The Illusive Man had been pretty forthcoming about both the mission and their chances "lucky your boss can move a hell of a lot of credits." If they lived through this mission then he could retire in a life of luxury, of course he was still undecided on that though.

"The Illusive Man is not my boss. You accept this mission then you are working directly for me, not Cerberus. You will be under my command, you will follow my orders. Understood?" Her tone was cold and hard, it was obvious she was serious and would not accept any answer but a yes. He had to repress a grin before he answered; he was liking this girl already.

"Works for me Shepard. Let's go be big goddamn heroes"

"Welcome aboard then. Sorry no time for orientation, we just got word that another person we are looking for is in deep shit." Shepard gestured for him to follow and he fell in a step behind her, alongside the brunette

"Never did catch your name sweet heart" he said to her, one look at her and it was obvious she wasn't one for flirting, so naturally he couldn't resist. He always had like a challenge.

"Miranda Lawson. Shepards XO" the woman replied in a heavily accented Australian accent, well someone else from the mother land. Her tone was just as cold as Shepards though, well this would certainly be fun.

"Ever heard of Archangel?" asked Shepard, he quickly looked back to her, not failing to notice that even with that bulky black and red armor she had a nice ass.

"Yeah got offered a contract to take him down but never saw the point. We both want the same thing, a lot of mercenaries dead."

"Well apparently he is in over his head right now; all the local gangs are closing in to take him down so we have to go pull his ass out of the fire." He saw now that she was walking towards the recruiting center that the blue suns had just set up to get any extra guns they could to help deal with Archangel, apparently he wasn't going down without a fight.

It would be kind of nice to meet this guy; after all he was pissing off the blue suns. Plus he would probably get to kill his fair share extracting him. Also he was going to get a chance to see Shepard in action, which was sure to be a treat. Looks like today was going to be his lucky day.

* * *

A Turian sniper who hated mercenaries and lowlifes. Her mind was only going to one place, she was trying to not get her hopes up but she couldn't help it. _Garrus_. She couldn't even do more than whisper his name in her head. The single greatest friend she had, could it really be him? god she…she couldn't even imagine. _No! Stop being stupid, the odds of it being him are so low! Just waist and see. Stupid girl._

She walked past the freelancers and towards the gunship, or rather the Batarian working on it. Trying to calm herself she focused on the mission.

"You Cathka?" she asked. He put down his tool and looked at her

"Huh, you at least look like you can handle yourself. Not like the rest of these freelancer shits." He lit a cigarette and leaned against his large tool chest.

"So what's the plan?" she really wasn't in the mood for chit chat, after all she was going to be killing these bastards pretty soon.

"Pretty simple. You and the rest of the freelancers go out, draw fire while the second team moves in. They will plant bombs around the complex as a backup if they can't take out Archangel personally."

So they would have to hurry, cut right through the freelancers and get into the compound to take out the second team before they could get those bombs set up. Easy. Shepard glanced over to the gunship

"What about that?" it would be best if they could take that out of action before it even took off.

"I still have some repairs to make on it then I am sure Tarak will take it up if Archangel is still kicking after round one." So he was the mechanic… the Batarian turned and began listening to his com "okay team two is in position. First team engage!"

Shepard turned to watch as the freelancers began firing towards the building and leaping over the barricade. Good of time as any. She faced the Batarian as he turned around and began working again.

Shepard pulled the silver bladed knife from the sheath on her left thigh. In two strides she came up behind the Batarian. Clamping her free hand over his mouth she slammed the dagger into his throat. He kicked and jerked as she ripped the blade across his throat, blood sprayed out as she severed the artery and his windpipe. She let the body fall to the floor where it twitched a few times before finally falling completely still. But she didn't stay long enough to see.

Turning around she sheathed the knife, noting the almost approving look Zaeed was giving her. They moved quickly to the barricade, Shepard pulled her shotgun free and leapt over the metal and landed on the bridge. It was littered with corpses and more freelancers tried to move across.

Shepard saw one of the freelancers drop, blood and bone exploding out the back of his skull. Her eyes immediately darted up towards the balcony where the shot had come from; even from here she could see it was a Turian, one with a sniper rifle and blue armor. She watched as his scope shifted, she knew he was aiming at her, she could feel it.

But he did not fire; she locked eyes with him, even though he was wearing a helmet. He lowered the weapon for a second and their gazes held. It was him. It had to be! She knew it was! She could feel it, even with the helmet she could feel the way he was looking at her, dammit she could see his blue eyes already! He staggered as bullets hit his shields and he turned and fired back into the building.

A massive surge of energy overcame it. _GARRUS! _She screamed the name in her mind now. It was him! she activated her biotics and shot across the bridge to slam into a group of mercs near the main door. The one she connected with was thrown into the wall where he broke his neck. Shepard killed the remaining two in the span of two seconds before immediately sprinting inside. Zaeed and Miranda could mop up. She had to get to him!

One merc was setting up a bomb; he looked up as she ran in the building. Without breaking her stride Shepard shot him in the face before she even reached the stairs. Another merc began firing on her from up top. She took the hits and fired two rounds with her shotgun; one connected and killed the merc.

Her insane run carried her up the stairs. She wasn't even thinking about anything other than him right now. She needed to get to him. She would kill every last one of these fuckers to do it!

She reached the top of the stairs where two mercs were pressed up against the door frame, firing inside at Arch-at Garrus. The machine in her tried to make her focus but dammit not even the machines inside her could stop her now!

She fired her weapon but it was empty, her crazy mind forgetting to reload. Without stopping she kept running at the mercs, both of whom had noticed her. She reached the first; she threw all of her physical and biotic strength into the punch. It passed through the man's barriers and smashed clean through his armor, she felt her hand enter his insides, she grabbed his heart and physically tore it out. This fucker had tried to hurt Garrus!

She pulled her hand free and turned to the next merc. Her eyes were wide at what she had seen but she still brought her weapon up. Shepard stepped towards her, her mind still a bloodlust, demanding she kill everyone who tried to hurt Garrus. She smashed the weapon aside as the merc failed to maneuver it in time. Slamming a fist into the woman's face she grabbed her by the collar and bashed her head into the door frame…dammit she didn't know how many times but eventually the merc stopped struggling and she threw her over the railing to the room below.

Shepard quickly moved into the room where she stood face to helmet with the blue armored Turian. He was looking right at her, she looked back at him. The savagery that overcame her was suddenly gone and a new focus entered her mind.

"Garrus?" she whispered, her voice almost failed her as she was suddenly aware that she might be wrong. He reached up and pulled free his helmet. Shepard almost collapsed as legs began to shake, the room started to spin but miraculously he didn't, she could still focus on him perfectly. He looked…god it was him!

"Shepard" he said in that completely unique voice of his. She couldn't contain herself any longer, and apparently neither could he. They both bolted across the room, colliding in the center in a massive embrace. His arms went around her waist and under her arms. He lifted her from the floor but she didn't care as she wrapped her arms around his chest and hugged as tightly as she could.

It was as if suddenly everything washed away, all the shit she had gone through, all the doubt, the self-hatred, it was all gone now. He was here. God nothing else mattered.

"I thought you were dead" he whispered, hugging her tighter.

"It's a long story," she couldn't get into that now, it would just bring up too much shit. She just wanted to be happy "but I am here now."

"Shepard we have finished up down here, where are you?" Miranda's voice came over her com. Dammit

"Upstairs on the balcony." She replied, holding in her sigh. Dammit couldn't she just have this one thing? Garrus set her back down and they released their embrace. She looked up at Garrus and couldn't help but smile, at least he was here.

"How are you doing?" she asked, hearing her companions coming up the stairs.

"Been better, but a hell of a lot better seeing you." He replied, his mandibles fluttered slightly and she knew that was his attempt to smile. His voice sounded so tired though, she could tell just by his tone that he was tired.

"I will expect an explanation later," she said in her commander tone "but for now we need to get you out of here." The machine she was overrunning everything again. She turned as Zaeed and Miranda entered the room.

"Miranda, Zaeed, this is Garrus, or Archangel as you better know him." she gestured to her companions.

"Bloody nice to meet you," grunted Zaeed "I admire your work."

"Thanks," chuckled Garrus "but it has gotten me into a bit of trouble. I don't think it's going to be very easy getting out of here."

"Well then we kill every fucker who gets in the way" Growled Shepard. She was not going to let a bunch of pathetic mercenaries stand in her way now. She was getting Garrus out of here; she was getting him to safety.

"Glad to see you haven't changed" Garrus said with a chuckle "we can let them throw themselves at us again, whittle there numbers down then break out." It was a good plan, she nodded to Garrus who reloaded his rifle and she knew he was grinning, which caused her to grin back "Let's do what we do best."

* * *

Meditation was something that one could easily loose themselves in, and the deep meditative state that Revan was in meant he had no way of knowing how long he had been sitting on the dirty floor of his rented apartment.

He had been able to simply loose himself in the force, its neutral state allowed him to easily get lost in its flow. During his entire meditation he had been able to sense…something, a looming darkness that was simply waiting, just beyond the edges of his senses.

He had been trying to seek its origins, to find what it was. He instantly thought that it was the Reapers that the Commander had spoken of. If she had been speaking the truth then he needed to know, he needed to find the truth for himself.

His mind was reaching out to the edges of this galaxy; he could feel the presence growing stronger. This darkness was nothing like the sith, it was not a vortex of anger and hatred. Instead it was cold and completely devoid of any kind of passion. It almost felt mechanic, in fact it almost totally felt machine, but there was still a hint of something…more.

He reached further, pushing his mind even closer to the darkness. He was almost there, it was getting stronger, larger, more numerous. Revan almost recoiled…there were thousands- millions-

He was suddenly sucked forward, losing all control as the force seized total control and he could do nothing but watch and feel.

_Their numbers were beyond counting, they were resolute in their purpose, set on their course, and there would be no swaying them. Soon they would be unleashed and the entire galaxy would tremble at their coming._

_ Massive shapes loomed over worlds; they obliterated entire armies that stood before them. Then the worlds would burn. The inhabitants were twisted into new horrible creations that would only add to the destruction and chaos._

_ Entire worlds died, entire sectors. Trillions upon trillions of souls would perish. Nearly all life would be extinguished_- Revan cried out, falling back on the floor as he felt every death, every soul on every world, he felt them all die. Pain washed through his entire body, fire washed through his veins and he could not stop it-

_ With no remorse, pity, or hesitation the beings exterminated all life that they had come to cleanse. The galaxy would lie stripped of nearly all life. Only rubble and ruins would remain. Then the beings would disappear, with the intent to return again to being the cycle once more-_

The vision shifted suddenly and the pain began to subside, his body was slick with sweat and he couldn't feel anything anymore but the vision did not let go.

-_The cavern was massive; the walls had a honeycomb pattern to them. A harsh and unnatural screech filled the air. A gigantic shape was in its death throes. It was a twisted metal shape of a human skeleton. It's glowing orange eyes seemed to be glaring down at the platform where three figures were firing weapons. _

_The red headed woman fired her weapon into its glowing eye_- Shepard!- _the creature shrieked again as its power faded and it began to collapse into the cavern. Two aliens accompanied her, one was massive and wore black and orange armor while the second was tall and wore blue armor. _

_ The aliens congratulated each other and the commander. But it was cut short as a skeletal hand grabbed the edge of the platform and began tearing it away. The Commander shouted a curse and began firing at the creature as her companions climbed to safety; the blue armored alien had a hand on her back and pulled her with him._

_ A final mighty tear caused the platform to collapse and smash into another beside it. The creature fell down the chasm with a screech. The aliens were thrown to the side and the blue armored one lost his grip on the commander. She fell, her body skidding along the platform she was headed right to the edge and her hands found no purchase to stop herself. _

_ The blue armored alien screamed her name and jumped down after her. The Commander skidded off the edge of the platform; her hand grabbed the edge, barely. The Alien was almost to her, but he was not quick enough. _

_ She lost her grip and fell down into the darkness. The alien cried her name and still tried to grab for her. The Commander made no sound as she fell, no final cry. She was simply silent as she disappeared into the darkness. _

Once more the vision shifted-

_The Commander stood in a room filled with light, behind her was a planet and above it hundreds of ships were engaged in battle with their monstrous foe- _another shift- _the darkness was gone, it was replaced with something…different. The battle had stopped, all the death and destruction had ceased in a single moment. _

_ The Commander was no longer standing in the room, she was gone, but…she wasn't gone. He could still feel her presence, it was changed, but it was still there. _

The visions finally stopped and Revan was snapped back into his own body. He gasped for air as he suddenly became aware of his body's needs. He slowly pulled himself up from the floor and leaned against the sofa.

His mind was racing to process everything that happened. Without a doubt that was the most intense vision he had ever experienced. It should have taken him time to figure it out but the force had shown him for a reason and he knew it was guiding him in his understanding.

The Reapers would carry out their mission; they would kill trillions of souls. Yet he also knew, he had seen it! She could stop it, he didn't know how, hell he didn't even know why it was her. But it was. He could feel it.

But he had also seen her die, he had seen it happen and he had seen what would come to pass if she did. But it was not written in stone. The force had shown him two futures, neither was guaranteed, the future was always in motion.

Revan glared at his hands. Dammit! Why did it have to be her, the woman who infuriated and terrified him because of who she reminded him of? Why was it her!

He sighed as he leaned his head back. The force had shown him this for a reason. He knew what he had to do; there was only one course of action if he didn't want to see this galaxy awash in death.

Looking back on it Revan would later laugh at this moment. Just as he realized what he had to do he got the sudden sense of impending danger. He immediately jumped to his feet, lightsabers in hand. It only took him a second to realize though that it was not him in danger.

Reaching out it was clear the force was still guiding him because he recognized the presence who was actually in danger. It was the Commander. He knew what he needed to do.

Revan put on his helmet, lifted his hood and clipped his light sabers to his hip. The last item was newly purchased, after some research into the weaponry of this galaxy he had purchased a pistol called a Carnifex, both the information he had read on it and the test the dealer had allowed him to perform showed the weapon had promise. He strapped it on the back of his waist to the magnetic clips he had added to his own belt.

He quickly wiped his terminal then left it in the room as he exited the apartment. He moved quickly through the streets as the force led him to the Commander. He had to save her; it was clear that for now this was his purpose here. If she died then the galaxy would follow.

* * *

"God dammit!" growled Shepard as she ducked behind the pillar to avoid the torrent of bullets that slammed into it and where she had been standing a second before. Why couldn't these mercenaries be stupid and just come at them in waves or some bullshit like that?

After they realized that the first attack had failed the mercenary groups had launched a single massive attack on the compound. Freelancers, Eclipse mercenaries and their mechs had stormed over the barricades and charged the bridge. Meanwhile the Blood pack and dug tunnels under the compound and were flooding through them.

Shepard spun from the pillar and fired a shotgun blast into an eclipse mercs chest, destroying his barriers and killing him instantly. She saw another drop with a single shot through their head. Garrus was still above on the balcony while she had taken position near the front door.

"Miranda what's your situation?" she yelled into her com as return fire forced her back into cover.

"Commander we cannot hold this position, there are just too many." Miranda's voice was garbled by gunfire and small explosions. She was in the tunnels with Zaeed trying to hold the blood pack.

"Copy," she fired two blasts at the advancing merc, killing one and grazing the second "once the bombs are primed pull back and detonate!" they had re-purposed the bombs the mercenaries had planted to destroy the entrance to the compound from the basement.

"Affirmative, Miranda out." The com went silent and Shepard reloaded her weapon.

"Garrus the tunnels are falling, team two is falling back."

"Copy, we got more eclipse coming over!"

Shepard cursed violently as she moved from cover and began firing at the mercs. This was getting out of hand way too quickly. Garrus had been explaining that the mercs had been attacking in waves when they had launched their massive assault.

She ducked back in cover to reload. Fuck they weren't getting out of this without help.

"Normandy this is Shepard, come in!"

"Hey Shepard, having fun?" asked Joker with a chuckle.

"Joker we need fire support ASAP!" she bellowed firing at the mercenaries again.

"Copy that Commander, dispatching the Kodiaks now. ETA five minutes." Shepard just nodded and reloaded. An explosion drew her attention to the interior of the building

"Commander the entrance to the tunnels has been sealed but it won't take them long to either find a way around or blow through it." Reported Miranda

"Copy, I need you both here with me at the entrance!" As if on cue her thermal clip ran dry and return fire smashed into her. Shepard staggered back as her barriers failed and she could feel two bullets enter her body, one in the thigh and a second in her side. She snarled and dropped behind cover.

Her armor systems quickly applied medi-gel to the wounds, stemming the bleeding. Zaeed came through the door firing rapid bursts from his vindicator; Miranda was close behind, her SMG pouring fire onto the mercenaries.

"Need some help Shepard?" grunted Zaeed as he reloaded. She nodded her thanks to the grizzled mercenary and quickly got back to her feet, firing plasma bolts at these annoying ass mercs.

Just when she began to think everything would work out another surge of mechs poured over the barricades, and a second later blue suns mercenaries followed. They fired a well-coordinated torrent of fire towards them, forcing her and her two companions into cover.

"Just fuck off already!" she bellowed over the gunfire, blind firing her weapon in anger. This wasn't how it was supposed to go! She was failing all over again! GOD DAMMIT! Her shotgun rang dry and she threw it to the ground in anger and pulled free her mattock.

She needed to keep a clear head, if they could just hang on for a few more minutes then the air support would get here and everything-

"Shepard I spotted the Bloodpack heading over the barricade, guess they got fed up with the tunnels, they will be here any second" said Garrus. Fucking hell! The blood pack would just swarm them with sheer numbers! So she had failed.

"Or maybe not…" muttered Garrus. Shepard was about to voice her confusion at his words and tone but then it was answered for her. She looked past the mercenaries, and saw the area behind the barricades light up in a massive purple glow, even over the gunfire she could hear people screaming. What the fuck was going on?

* * *

Revan watched as a dozen mercenaries writhed in pain as electricity coursed through their entire bodies. He continued the storm just long enough to kill the mercenaries. When they fell dead he bolted forward, using the force to augment his speed he moved into a group of mercenaries coming to stop his attack.

They were not prepared for his sudden burst of speed and he was in the middle of them before even a shot was fired and now it was too late for them. In a heartbeat both lightsabers were in his hand and with a flick of his thumbs that familiar snap-hiss sound of them igniting filled his ears and he grinned.

Revan slashed one blade across an alien's chest while the second severed another's head. Spinning on his heel he cut another in two, at the waist and plunged his second blade into a fourths chest. He sensed the rifle butt coming at his head and leaned back to avoid it and severed the aliens arms, the rifle dropped and it howled in pain, he quickly ended its suffering by removing it's head.

The alien fell and he immediately launched himself into the air, avoiding the incoming fire he had sensed from his left. He used the force to augment his strength and launch himself much higher into the air than normal. Revan used the momentum of his jump to propel himself forward and then crash down into the three mercenaries who had fired on him.

He decapitated two simultaneously during his fall, landing at a crouch he thrust one blade up through the last mans chest. He pulled the blade free and turned. He could sense more mercenaries beyond the barricade in front of him, he sensed their confusion as to what was happening, they were currently trying to receive orders.

Revan raised a hand and then jerked it back, a large portion of the barricade followed his hand, the metal screeched as it was torn apart. He threw the debris to the side and propelled himself through the hole into more of the foes.

The mercenaries fired on him as he ran but he had been prepared for it. His lightsabers began moving in a blur, too fast for the human eye to track as the force guided his arms and intercepted the slugs. Most were disintegrated by his lightsabers while others passed through too quickly and were merely turned into molten slag which bounced off his armor or burned small holes in his robes. No harm was done though and he was now in their midst.

He spun in a complete circle, cutting down three of the five in an instant. A fourth fired at him point blank but he had sensed the action coming and had already rolled to the side by the time the trigger was pulled. Coming up behind another mercenary he thrust his lightsaber through the womans chest. Her companion tried to shoot him but he simply blocked the bullets with her body.

Thrusting his hand out he lasted the remaining mercenary back with the force. He pulled the blade free and spun at the two mercenaries coming up to his right. He hurled one lightsaber at the mercenaries, guiding it with his mind he turned to the fallen mercenary who was now getting to his feet.

His empty hand grabbed the pistol from his back and in one smooth motion he extended it and shot the mercenary twice in the head, at the same time he felt his lightsaber decapitate the other two mercenaries. By the time he had returned the pistol to his back the blade sailed into his waiting hand.

His head snapped forward to look past the final barricade and at the complex beyond, his senses blared a warning through his mind, she was hurt. He needed to get t her!

* * *

Shepard fired at the confused cluster of mercenaries, clearly something was going on, it sounded like they were being attacked from the rear.

"Joker are the shuttles here yet?"

"Negative, two more minutes commander." So it wasn't them…

"Garrus what can you see?" he had the best vantage point right now.

"Someone is butchering-" he never finished as a loud explosion rocked the complex. Shepard spun and saw the massive shapes of Krogans emerging from the ruined entrance to the tunnels.

"Kill them all!" bellowed one of the Krogan, a pretty big bastard, even by their standards. Two of the other Krogan ran towards the stairs, towards Garrus!

"Hold them here!" she shouted to Zaeed and Miranda before activating her biotics and smashing into the rear Krogan. Their leader was already at the top of the stairs.

The Krogan she hit was knocked flat on his face, fighting through her spinning vision she fired several rounds from her mattock into the back of the bastards head. The second Krogan turned to face her and Shepard wasted no time in emptying the rest of her clip into his face.

It wasn't enough to kill him but it did stagger him back. She threw her shoulder into the much larger alien, it took all of her strength but she managed to knock him over the railing. She reloaded and sent another ten shots into the alien, finally killing him.

She could hear gunfire and shouts coming from the balcony and her mind entered the bloodhaze again. Garrus! She ran up the stairs as fast as she could. She saw the Krogan firing somewhere into the room she couldn't see, but he wasn't looking at her.

Activating her charge again she slammed into the Krogan but it only staggered him back. Holy hell! Even hitting Wrex hadn't hurt that much! Her vision was spotty and she almost felt like vomiting. This had been a mistake but she had abandoned all rational thought to save Garrus.

The Krogan recovered quicker than she did and smashed his head down onto hers. Shepard was thrown to the ground, now she really felt like throwing up. The Krogan laughed and said something should couldn't make out due to the ringing in her ears. But she didn't care. Shepard raised her rifle and fired without seeing at where the Krogan had been.

Her vision began to clear in time to see the Krogan bat her weapon away and wrapped one massive hand around her throat. With his free hand he fired his shotgun at Garrus who she could faintly hear calling her name. She was quickly loosing feeling through her body. She was dying again, and it felt exactly the same. Failure. She was a failure.

The last thing she saw were two bright flashes of red and then the Krogan seemed to fall apart infront of her.

Shepard gasped for air as she hit the ground. She was supposed to be dead, she had been dying. What the hell had- she looked up and saw a black and red figure standing above her, two red…lasers? Were in each hand. She looked up at the black and red mask they wore…Revan? He didn't say anything, merely looked at her for a moment and then he leapt off the balcony.

Garrus was instantly over her "Shepard!" he cried, looking for injuries.

"I am fine" she croaked, pushing him away. That was Revan! She quickly rose, ignoring her nausea, she ran towards the balcony and stumbled over the remains of the Krogan. She glanced down and saw he had been…god he had been cut into three pieces, across the middle of his head then the across his chest.

She quickly turned back to the balcony and looked down. The bridge was littered with corpses and destroyed mechs, and in the center was Revan. He was in the middle of three mercenaries, cutting them down with the lasers in his hand. Suddenly he trust his hand out and two mercenaries who were taking up a firing position on him were blasted back by an invisible force and tumbled over the bridge.

When she looked back to Revan the mercenaries he had been fighting were dead but he had not moved. He threw both his laser…sword…things. They spun through the air, one headed for a mercenary on the broken remains of the barricade, the second veered towards two more that were at the bottom of the barricade. Somehow they both flew directly towards their targets.

The laser swords cut down the three mercenaries and then sped back to Revan's hands. Shepard was struck still and speechless for the first time in her life. She had never seen anything like that in her life.

Shepard felt Garrus's presence at her side, neither of them spoke for a moment. Revan turned to look at them. Before anything else happened there was a loud whirring noise that she recognized instantly. Gunship! The aircraft shot up from below the bridge, guns trained on Revan. She was about to yell out to him but a second later he had raised his hand to the gunship and she watched as it was crushed into a ball no bigger than her chest.

"So…I take it he is on our side, right?" asked Garrus. Shepard didn't answer him; she simply locked stares with the masked man. She had been feeling terrible about turning Revan away the moment it happened, and now he had just single handily saved all their lives. Dammit now she felt even worse. What the hell was she going to say to him now?

* * *

**Well there it is! Revan finally in action. I hope you all liked it. I didnt show off ALL of his powers yet, he still has more tricks up his sleeve. **

**This chapter was actually really tough to write, I had no idea how to write a force vision so I kind of just went with what made sense to me.**

**Also I tried to introduce more of Shepards inner turmoil about everything that is going on. It will definitely be developed more as the story goes on. I hope it didn't seem too out of the blue, I tried to leave a few hints about it earlier but never got the chance to really explore it until now.**

**As for Zaeeds part well I always liked him and it sucked that he never got any real conversations in the game. Also I hope I wasnt the only one that thought of him as this galaxies Canderous, him and Revan are going to be good friends!**

**I also finally got into showing what was in the chest of stuff they took from Revans shuttle. The mandelorian armor will have a very special significance to him. Also for those of you who don't know, armor colors have specific meanings to the mandelorians. Green means duty.**

**As for the fight scene I hope you all enjoyed it! I am trying to not make Revan too overpowered but frankly he would have no problem dealing with a bunch of lowly mercenaries. The fights will get tougher as they encounter the Collectors (and later the Reapers)**

**A quick note about Revans vision. I have decided the Shepard is the only person who can use the Crucible, which is why he needs to keep her alive. Also I hinted at the option Shepard will choose, or rather wont choose. **

**Also I am trying to think of a way for Garrus to get his scars, I feel like they add on to his character, it just wont work out like in the game (doesnt make sense with Revan there)  
**

**Okay a quick moment for some concerns that people have expressed.**

**Yes I do understand that pretty much the entire 2nd game is about Shepard running around and gathering a team of people she doesnt really know. I hope by now I have explained her real reasons for turning Revan away, it will be explored a little bit further but I feel like I have made it clear by now. I feel like the ability to affect people brains would make anyone nervous (Plus remember Shepards experiences with the Thorian? And indoctrination) **

**Also for those people who want Revan to go his own way and don't want this to just turn into a retelling of the game with Revan making the odd comment, that will not happen! While he will be joining the crew to take down the collectors, bear in mind two things.**

**1. I will be changing the game in order to fit with Revan being present, so things will happen differently from the game.**

**2. This story will cover both ME 2 and 3. There is a gap between the end of ME 2 and the beginning of 3. Revan may or may not stay with Shepard during that time (wink-wink, nudge-nudge) **

**And back to the debate of Revan being able to block ME projectiles. He will be able to block the bullets IF he has time to prepare. Mass Effect bullets do travel faster than blaster bolts in SW. That's just the way it is going to be, all my research told me that and its just how I want it to be. Revan does need to have some challenges to overcome in this universe.**

**I would also like to thank everyone for the kind words and reviews. I truly appreciate it all! I never imagined anyone would like this story!**

**As always I appreciate reviews and constructive criticism if anyone has any. **

**I hope you are all enjoying the story and I will upload a new chapter soon! Thank you all for reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

Everyone was gathered on the bridge by the time the shuttles arrived. Shepard was the last to join them, along with Garrus. Miranda and Zaeed were both thanking Revan for his timely arrival, along with admiring his powers.

She had deliberately put off going down there until the shuttles had arrived, she didn't know how she was going to handle this. She had turned Revan away for a terrible reason but he had seemed fine with leaving, yet now he came back out of nowhere and saved her life. He had saved her entire squads life, no matter what her personal feelings that meant something.

"So you know this guy?" asked Garrus as they walked towards the bridge, they were still out of earshot, the incoming shuttles also helped.

"We met. It's kind of a long story."

"Well please tell me he is on your crew, we could definitely use his help. I have never seen anything like that! Dammit he turned that gunship into a paperweight!" Garrus sounded excited as he spoke, it was clear that he was impressed by Revan. Hell she had been too, she had never seen anything like that in her life.

"Like I said it's a long story. He offered his help but…" she decided that explaining everything to Garrus could probably be a good thing, maybe he could help her decide what to do. "I turned him down"

"Why?" Garrus looked at her, his eyes widening. She stopped before they reached the others, signalling for them to load onto the shuttles. She could feel Revan staring at her; the black and red mask just looked in her direction for a moment before climbing onto the shuttle.

"Okay I'll elaborate more later but the gist of it is this. He is from another galaxy, that power he used isn't biotics, its nothing we have ever even heard of before. He can read minds and make people tell the truth, probably make them do whatever he wants." She let out a breath as she finished and waited for Garrus's response. She trust him and right now she needed another opinion, she was way too conflicted on this, especially now.

"Well that's…crazy. But with you Shepard I will believe just about anything. So let me guess, you turned him down because you worried about him using those powers against us?" Shepard almost laughed how quickly and easily Garrus had figured her out.

"Pretty much"

"I get you concern…but Shepard he just saved our lives. We are going up against a race we know almost nothing about; we are going to need a lot of help. Not saying we drop our guard around him, but if he offered to help and then shows up to save our lives, why not give him a chance?" Shepard was silent as she took in her friends words. What he said made sense. Revan had already proved he could be immensely helpful and things were only going to get harder from her on. While she was still weary of his powers having Garrus on board now eased her mind about that, she would have one person she could depend on no matter what. If things went bad with Revan, she would have Garrus to help her out.

"Come on, let's go." She still wasn't completely decided; first she would talk with Revan. However Garrus had eased her worries a lot. They jumped into the transport, Revan was seated across from Miranda, the two were in mid conversation.

"-unlike anything we have ever seen. I was hoping you could provide us with some insight into what makes them so strong." Shepard just shook her head as she strapped herself in, Miranda just couldn't even wait until she had made a decision. The woman was dedicated.

"I was unaware you retrieved my belongings from the shuttle," replied Revan, his masked face swung to look at Shepard "guess you forgot you forgot to return them." she didn't reply, he wouldn't believe that she really had just forgotten.

"The fault is mine. When got back to the Normandy I quickly took them to the lab. Shepard was more concerned with your health and forgot to even ask about them." Shepard just looked at Miranda in surprise, she had actually defended her.

"No matter," Revan replied with a shrug, he looked back towards Miranda "anyway to answer your question, the material is extremely rare, Beskar is its name. It's only found on one planet in my galaxy, it's the strongest metal in existence. I doubt that it exists here."

"That's too bad" Miranda looked disappointed for a moment but then she jumped right back into the questions "what about those!" she pointed to the tubes at his waist "they were emitting some kind of laser, you were using them like a sword!" god Miranda sounded almost giddy. Although Shepard had to admit she was very curious about the laser swords as well. In this day and age melee weapons were pretty rare, apart from the occasional bayonet. Most races did their fighting at range, the exceptions being the Krogan and other Vanguards.

"It's not a laser sword. It's actually a blade of pure plasma held within a force containment field. If you would like I can go into further detail later." Shepard forced away her glare; dammit he was just inviting himself into her crew now, as if the choice was his! She didn't listen to Miranda's elated response; her effort was focused on pushing away her annoyance. She would need a clear mind when dealing with Revan.

"Laser, plasma, whatever. You cut through those mercs like they were nothin, it was goddamn impressive. Saved our asses." Said Zaeed in his gruff voice, he was seated beside Miranda.

"It was no trouble, they terrible excuses for mercenaries." Zaeed just laughed in response. It seemed everyone but her had no trouble with Revan, of course they didn't know about his mind powers. Shepard knew she would have to tell them, everyone needed to know if Revan joined them. God was she really going to let him join?

She mentally shook herself. No, now wasn't the time to decide, she still needed to talk with him. He had come out of nowhere and saved their lives, she wanted to know why. She was going to put everything out there, she would tell him why she had turned him down and she how he responded. Shepard spent the rest of the shuttle ride deciding on exactly what she would say.

* * *

Shepard looked around the debriefing room, she had assembled the entire crew in the room, she made eye contact with everyone except Revan. What was up with that mask? She quickly pushed the thought from her mind and focused

"Alright first of all I just want to congratulate everyone on a mission well done," so looked at Revan now, she somehow knew he was staring directly at her even though it was impossible to see his eyes "and a special thank you to Revan and his timely intervention." The masked and hooded man simply nodded.

"Now for those of you who don't know, which is probably everyone, this is Garrus" she pointed to the tall Turian standing beside her, his familiar presence filled her with a calm she hadn't felt in some time "he will be joining us on our mission to take down the collectors. As of this moment he will be third in command behind me and Miranda." She could hear Garrus's mandibles click faintly in surprise. Honestly she would have made him her second but she didn't want to get into that with Miranda right now. As much as she distrusted Cerberus she still needed their resources, Miranda could keep the title but in her mind Garrus was second.

"Also this is Zaeed, a mercenary contracted by the Illusive Man; he is joining us as well. I am sure his experience will prove invaluable." She heard a faint noise, almost like a grunted laugh, at first she assumed it was Zaeed but she was looking right at him, it hadn't come from him. Her eyes looked over to Revan and she just knew it had come from him.

"Commander," said Miranda "I couldn't help but notice you never said Revan was joining us, yet he is here." Well it was time to get this over with. He was the reason she had called everyone together. She may not have trusted Cerberus but the people on this ship were her crew and they would be walking right into hell with her. She owed them the truth, no matter what she would not lie to them. It was important they knew about Revan's power. Plus Miranda would probably just report everything to her boss anyway.

"That is why I called everyone here. As some of you may remember we picked Revan up before arriving at Omega, he offered to join us then but I turned him down."

"Something about not being able to trust me, but a mercenary you have never met is much more trustworthy right?" scoffed Revan, Shepard wasn't even angry at his comment, she had that one coming.

"That was the reason I gave yes. However it seems you are determined to help us and as Garrus pointed out to me, we need all the help we can get. However before I accept you I want to tell you and everyone here why I really turned you down." She looked around at each of the faces before finally settling on Revan.

"Revan comes from a different galaxy, how he got here is a story from another time but it's the only logical conclusion, one EDI, Revan, and I agree with. However as some of you have witnessed, Revan possesses an incredible power he calls The Force. This power is not related to biotics in anyway and from what I've seen it is immensely more powerful." Shepard took in a breath, this was it "The reason I turned him away is because this power also grants him the ability to affect people minds. He was able to force Chakwas to tell the truth and also read Jacksons mind. I assume you have other powers that can affect people's mind as well, this is the reason I turned Revan away. I don't know him, I don't his motives, and therefore I couldn't be certain that he would not use these powers against us. That's it, if you or anyone else has anything to say now is the time."

* * *

Revan stared at the Commander as she finished speaking. He could feel all eyes on him. He was surprised at her honesty with her entire crew, he had been expecting some kind of secret meeting, but she had laid everything out for everybody to hear, including her true reasons for turning him away.

He wished she had told him this at the outset, it actually made him less pissed at her. These reasons made more sense and he could understand them more than a simple trust issue. Revan looked around the room; he knew everyone was waiting for him to speak. He locked eyes with the Commander, he knew what she was doing and he couldn't help but admire her for it. She had backed him into a corner, either he had to give them a reason to trust him or he would be turned away. He couldn't even be pissed at the clever tactic.

"The Commander is right; I do possess these powers and more. For instance I could make those of a weak will do whatever I told them to." He wasn't going to list everything he could do, this was the thing they would be most afraid of so he would come clean about it "looking around this room I can pick out a handful of people that I could influence right now." Everyone in the room visibly tensed, the broad dark skinned man visibly reached for his weapon. Going with his gut Revan reached out and pulled the pistol from the man's fingertips, letting it hover in front of him.

Most people in the room stared wide eyed, a few more reached for weapons but no one actually drew them. Revan set the gun down on the table before him

"Sorry but you were the most likely to shoot." He looked around the room again "so yes I can read minds, again for those of a strong will I can only discern base intentions such as violence, not actual thoughts. I understand these powers scare some of you; it was the same in my own galaxy. However I hope that I can assure you that I will not use them against you." He could sense the fear coming from many of the weaker willed crew; it was time to placate the masses.

"If I was to influence someone to do my will they would do it without question, however they would have no recollection of me telling them to do it, nor why they did it. So if you see someone do something odd and they don't know why…well that's one way of knowing." He was unsure about sharing this next part with everyone. However he knew it was essential to earning their trust. As much as he despised the idea of having to prove his loyalty to these people, his path was clear. He needed to be here. He needed to ensure the Commanders survival; his pride would have to shut up for now.

"Now this next part will sound very unbelievable to you all but it is the truth and it is the reason I wish to join you and would do nothing to hinder your efforts." He took in a breath, this would be interesting "the force showed me a vision of the future and I saw what would happen if the Reapers won, I saw this galaxy burn." The next part was slightly made up but he felt there was a connection between the return of the Reapers and the Collectors, even if he hadn't technically seen it.

"The Collectors are connected to the return of the Reapers, I know what will happen if they return. Whether I like it or not this Galaxy is where I am stuck and I do not want to see its inhabitants slaughtered, especially if I am to be among them." He really didn't care for his own life but everyone could understand self-preservation "I know how important you will all be in stopping both the Reapers and the Collectors. That is why I wish to add my powers to yours, so we may save this galaxy."

He cast another look around the room, his eyes settled on the Commander, her expression was guarded as usual but he could see something in her eyes…almost as if they were softening to the hard glare she usually gave him.

"I am sorry but did you say you saw the future?" laughed one of the crew, Revan flicked his eyes to the man who stood near the Commander, he had a beard, wore a cap and was leaning heavily on the table.

"Yes I did, one of the possible futures." He replied flatly, skepticism was to be expected

"Wow Shepard looks like you found yourself a prophet" laughed the man again.

"Impossible." Said one of the aliens, his research told him it was a Salarian "future cannot be predicted with certainty. Only extrapolated, calculated, hypothesized."

"The force sometimes grants visions on the future. However that does not mean it is set. The future is always in motion, what I saw was merely what will happen IF the Reapers win. I want to work to prevent that future." He repressed a sigh, it was hard enough explaining these things to people who at least knew about the force but it was completely unheard of in this galaxy.

"Look," began Revan, he didn't want to be here all day "I know this is hard for you all to believe, but it is the truth. I want to help save this galaxy. I cannot make you all trust me. Let me prove that I mean what I say." Deep down his pride began to growl again but he quickly pushed it down. No matter what his personal feelings were, he needed to do this. The Commander needed to live, so he would have to earn her trust and that of her crew apparently.

He truly didn't mean them any harm so it should prove an easy matter for them to trust him. He had always been good at persuading people, even without the force. The crew would be easy; the Commander was going to be the difficult one. Even his pride couldn't overpower his love of a challenge.

"I don't know about all this magical power stuff." Said the tall alien beside Shepard, Garrus was his name, a Turian "but you saved all our lives down on Omega, that goes a long way with me. For what it's worth Shepard, I say you give him a chance, it's the least he deserves." Revan nodded his head in thanks. It was clear from looking at the alien that he was a soldier, his research into the Turian race had proved it was something he held in common with many of his people.

The one thing a soldier could always count on no matter where he went is that there would always be a certain amount of respect among soldiers, well the good ones anyway. Saving someone's life was not easily forgotten, it was an action that deserved respect and gratitude. For the moment it seemed Revan had the Turians gratitude, enough to stand up for him.

"I agree" grunted the man in the middle of the table, his face was weathered and he had a horrible scar around his off colored eye "saved our asses down there and kicked the hell outta the blue suns without breaking a sweat. I wouldn't mind having him on our team."

"I agree Commander. Revan has given us little reason to distrust him. His escape attempt was understandable under the circumstances and I say saving our lives makes up for it" the accented brunette woman added her opinion and Revan nodded his thanks to her as well.

There was about a full minute of silence before the Commander finally opened her mouth

"Well if nobody has any objections then I see no reason why we shouldn't welcome Revan aboard."

"I will prove worthy of your trust Commander."

"I'll hold you to that. Everyone is dismissed." Revan let himself smile behind his mask, he may not have her trust yet but he was well on his way. Being stuck on this ship would make his secondary plan slightly more difficult however. He knew this was where he needed to be but it was also…inconvenient. He would have to find a way to take care of everything from this ship. He had made the plan during his meditations, while he hadn't worked out the exact details yet he had ideas.

This galaxy was not ready for the Reapers, that much was obvious. He would need to be prepared for their arrival, he knew it was inevitable. He needed an army.

* * *

**Okay first of all I want to apologize for the delay in this chapter and also for how short it is. **

**Its the end of semester for me at university so things have been crazy and it seemed every free moment I got to write I was hit my massive writers block, so I just had to force this chapter out. I am sure that will be obvious.**

**The next chapter will be longer and is already in the works. Goodbye writers block! although it did get me working on my Skyrim story.**

**So as for what happened in this chapter I don't really have much to say, pretty straight forward. **

**Yes Revan has joined the crew, however as hinted at the end he will still be pursuing his own agenda to make ready for the Reapers.**

**Now to address some reviews.**

**I realize that some people are having issues with Revan not being as smart as he should be, which I fully admit I have not shown yet. So far I have just been trying to show that Revan is a human and no matter how much of a technological and strategic genius he is still susceptible to human feelings like pride. But now that we are getting more into the story his genius will be coming out a lot more. Remember this story covers ME2 AND 3. **

**Tertium457: Thank you for pointing that out! I have spent way too long writing essays for profs who say contractions are evil. I do not even notice when I do it anymore. Therefore I would like to apologize to everyone for my horribly stiff dialogue, I am trying to get better at that. Blame school!**

**A very special thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story, and clicked the like/follow button at the top. Every time I get a notification of a new follower, like, or review it puts a smile on my face. Thank you all for the kind words of support and love for this story!**

**A final note.**

**I realized that I have been doing a poor job of showing any of the other characters apart from Revan and Shepard. This will change as I will be getting into the other character as well. Just a warning though that I am going to let some of my own bias show when it comes to Jacob. I REALLY dont like him, I think few people actually did. Always found him to be a useless squad mate, literally never took him anywhere after I got Zaeed and could switch him out. ALSO if fem shep romances him he just cheats on her and gets another chic pregnant and is just like "sorry bro" and that's it! What a bastard!...Sorry didn't mean to rant that long, anyways you wont be seeing much of Jacob, sorry but I really don't care about him enough to write anything too in depth. He will still be in the story but he just wont have any major role. **

**For those of you wondering if this will be a ShepardxGarrus or a ShepardxRevan story, the answer is...wait and see!**

**Again thank you all for reading this story and for liking it! I never imagined that so many people would like this, your words truly do humble me.**

**You are all awesome people in my books! Take care and I will have a new chapter for you soon (Action packed!) **


	8. Chapter 8

Revan looked down at the items neatly laid out across the table; he had a faint smile on his face. At least these had been saved. He picked up the long three-bladed knives, examining it with a keen eye for any new damages. The complete weapon was the length of his forearm. After the inspection he quickly put it into the hidden compartment in the armor along the inside of his forearm.

Next Revan stared down at the green armor laid before him. He slowly ran his gloved fingers across its surface. He was familiar with every scrape, dent, and cut in the armor and he traced along them all in what could almost be described as a reverent movement.

"_Ni su'cuyi, gar kyr'adyc, ni partayli, gar darasuum,_ Mesh'la" he whispered before removing his hand from the chest piece.

He quickly turned away from the green armor, taking in a deep breath before sitting down in his chair. He had set up his quarters in the far corner of the hangar bay. The large crates formed a natural wall giving him privacy; he had moved a few of them around with the force to further close it off, forming an actual room with only a single entrance.

It quickly became apparent that this was the least populated area on the ship, with only the occasional crew member coming down to perform maintenance on the shuttles. He had pulled two large workbenches in here, they sat against the western wall, the green armor sat on one while the second had the disassembled pistol he had bought. Against the eastern wall was a small cot that he had requisitioned. The north wall had a small desk with three terminals on it; he had made one last run to Omega to purchase them before they had left the station.

Each of the screens was displaying something different. The middle one was working on his plans for funding his operations, the right one had several smaller windows open, each dedicated to a different field or research. The left showed a series of schematics.

He pushed the chair from the work bench to wheel across the room, halting himself in front of the left computer. He stared at the schematics for the pistol he had disassembled, he carefully read over the detailed description of each part.

The weapons in this galaxy were certainly interesting. They still used slug based weapons. In his galaxy most people considered such weapons to be primitive, although there were some very high-end slug weapons that were still made. The weapons here though…they were quite efficient, he admired their design. Although when it came to the weapons widely used by ships in space, well he still thought the turbo laser technology of his galaxy was better in that regard.

Still these mass generators could propel slugs at incredible speeds; however the issue of overheating still seemed to be a serious problem. These thermal clips seemed to be nothing but a pain in the ass. Clearly they needed better internal heat sinks, rather than these stupid detachable ones.

It seemed this was a recent change as well. He couldn't figure out what had spawned the change, it seemed idiotic to him. The information told him that it was because in order to overcome the shields in this galaxy soldiers needed to pour a great amount of fire at their enemies. The weapons continually overheating gave time for shields to recharge. It seemed like a smart move at first but now it seemed these weapons could not operate without these thermal clips, essentially turning a gun that had near limitless ammo into one that had very little ammo.

"_Di'kutla_" he muttered to himself, shaking his head. Why not just improve the internal sinks to absorb heat better? It made no sense to him, but it mattered not. He would just fix it himself.

A beep from the middle terminal drew his attention and he quickly glided in front of it. Seems his worm was now dispersed. He stared at the screen for a full minute and tracked its progress. One minute and it had already spread to over a million accounts. Revan couldn't help but grin as it neared ten million. This was almost too easy. The odds of his worm being detected were incredibly low, he had been very careful in creating it; this had been his backup weapon to bankrupt the Republic if the war ever turned on him.

Even IF they did find it they would not be able to stop it, after all he had created it with technology from his galaxy, he only had to alter it slightly to work with these systems. The test on Omega proved that these systems could not detect it, so he had simply altered it to work on a much wider scale.

One billion accounts infected and still climbing. He would have the finds he needed by the end of the week. His worm would siphon off minuscule amounts from each bank account infected and then disperse them into over a thousand that he had created for this purpose. The amounts would go unnoticed by both the banks and the accounts owners as it was so small. But it was so widespread that it would still make him massive sums of money. Fifty six billion and it was starting to slow down. He loved technology.

He quickly shut off the middle terminal and wheeled back over to his workbench as he sensed a presence nearing. He recognized the feeling of the accented brunette as she crossed the cargo bay. She was a cold calm of carefully controlled emotions. She was also highly intelligent and seemed to have a thirst for any knowledge that could benefit her cause. Which at the moment was the same as this Illusive Mans's cause. He still needed to meet that man.

"Revan?" she called his name before stepping into the entrance to his makeshift room. He looked up from the disassembled heat sink before answering.

"Yes? Miranda Lawson, correct?" he knew that was her name but they had yet to be formally introduced.

"That's right, do you have a minute?" she still hadn't stepped passed the doorway, she seemed to respect boundaries, that was good to know.

"Sure, come in." She nodded her thanks and stepped inside, she only cast a quick glance around the room before her ice blue eyes settled on him again. She was focused.

"I wanted to speak to you about the mission." Well this would prove interesting. He knew that Miranda worked directly for the Illusive Man while the Commander was operating on her own agenda, simply using Cerberus for their resources so she could complete her mission. Perhaps this would lead to a power struggle on the ship? He nodded for her to continue.

"As Shepard said this is her mission. However it is also one that is funded and supported by the organization I work for, Cerberus. We are the ones who rebuilt Shepard, built this ship, provide funding, and have put together the dossiers for her team. Therefore you can imagine we have a lot invested in making sure this mission succeeds."

"Yes I understand." He replied with a nod, he knew where this was headed.

"You however, despite your desire to help, are still an unknown element. I need to make sure you have no designs that would harm Cerberus, or this operation."

"Well I can assure you that I will do nothing to jeopardize this mission. As for Cerberus…" he watched her expression closely as he paused, waiting to see her reaction, but she had none. Her face remained blank as she waited for him to continue. He smiled behind his mask, she certainly was a focused person "as long as Cerberus's goals align with saving this galaxy then I will not act against them either."

She nodded at his answer, and he could tell she was pleased with it. She truly believed that Cerberus was doing what was right. For now they may be but they were also an organization fighting for human superiority. He knew that when it came to galactic war they would do what was best for humans, not the galaxy. Sooner or later they would become a liability, perhaps even a hindrance. He would need to add that on his list of things to prepare for.

"Then I doubt we will have any problems." Revan simply nodded. Cerberus may become a threat, but what about her? She was strong-willed so he would have to exert some effort into reading her thoughts and feelings, which she would notice. However even just on the surface he got the feeling that she would do what was necessary, perhaps not what was right, but what needed to be done. When the Reapers came it would be imperative that everyone stood together on equal ground, a unified force was the only way of fighting them.

An organization that believed humans should be dominating in the galaxy would not fight to the benefit of other races. That would hinder the war; it would not be the logical thing to do. So would Miranda still support them if it came to that? Right now he couldn't be sure, but if he could find out more about her character and personality then he could decide if she would be a liability or be counted on.

"So would you care to learn how these work?" he asked, pointing to the lightsabers at his hip. He saw her eyes light up slightly with the anticipation and she nodded a very faint smile on her face. There was no time like the present.

* * *

Shepard finished drying her hair off; tossing the towel onto her sofa she pulled her hair up into a ponytail as she walked into the elevator. They were about a day from Korlus where they would pick up a Krogan warlord. Dammit she just wished she could get Wrex instead, he was the only old grumpy Krogan she wanted on her ship.

The elevator doors opened on the CIC and she quickly stepped out to find a smiling Kelly Chambers. Dammit this girl was always in a good mood.

"Good evening commander" she beamed

"Hello Kelly" she said, returning the smile but without nearly as much enthusiasm. She was nice, even if she did get a little annoying sometimes, she could talk forever!

"There are no new messages for you," she seemed to forget that Shepard was perfectly able to see on her own when she had messages "I was just about to head down for dinner, would you care to ride down with me?"

"Sure, just gotta grab Joker first; he forgets to get out of that damn chair sometimes." Shepard knew that part of the reason he didn't often join the others for meals was because it was difficult for him to get around. Since she had learned that she had always made sure to help him down so he could join the others. He had bitched about not needing help at first but after a while he just shut up and accepted it.

"Oh he is already down with the others, he looked like he was in a lot of pain but he said something about not wanting to be carried bridal style again." Shepard laughed at the image; she had only done that to him once when he had been particularly stubborn one day.

"Well let's go then" they loaded back into the elevator and Kelly pushed the button.

"I also wanted to talk to you about Revan." Shepard cursed under her breath, this was a damn ambush, she was trapped with nowhere to go. Luckily the ride didn't take long. "He has been on the ship three days but he has not made any contact with the other crew members. Only you, Miranda and Mordin have actually gone down to see him. He doesn't ever come out of the room he made in the cargo hold."

Shepard just nodded; she already knew all of this. Revan had been keeping to himself since he joined. Miranda and Mordin had both gone down to see him. Mordin only once, according to the Salarian it was to question him about the powers he had and to take a sample of his blood for study, which had turned up nothing. Miranda on the other hand had gone to see him a few times. Apparently he was showing her how his technology worked, she had tried to explain it to her once but Shepard had quickly silenced the brunette, too much nerd talk for her to understand.

She had only gone down to see him twice herself, to make sure he settled in, and to see if he was going to join them for dinner. Both times he had been hard at work on some kind of project. He had said he was working to improve their weapons. Both conversations had lasted no more than five minutes. Unless he was talking about his work he wasn't the most chatty type.

"And the fact that he never takes off his mask concerns me. Someone who does not show their face usually has something to hide. I am not saying it is anything sinister but it makes me wonder about him. He is a mystery." She picked up on Kelly's fluctuating voice on the end, she knew that damn tone. Half the women in the crew used that tone when they talked about Revan. Three days on the ship and already most of the women had a crush on him.

She wasn't sure if he was doing the whole dark and mysterious act on purpose but it was getting damn annoying. They hadn't even seen his face and already the women were giggling about him like a bunch of school girls. Hell only her and Chakwas had actually seen his face. She would admit it wasn't a bad face to look at…but this was still getting annoying!

The doors opened and the two women walked out and entered into the main room where most of the crew sat around the large table, already eating. Shepard nodded to those she passed on her way to dish up her plate. She had made sure to grab some real food on the citadel; Cerberus had given them shit provisions.

Shepard dished up a bowl of pretty good smelling stew, she had been hoping for brinner though. Nothing beat pancakes for supper. She smiled as she walked over to one of the few empty seats left at the table. Garrus kicked it out for her as she neared.

"Such a gentleman." She said with a grin.

"Yeah I know" he replied with his Turian grin. Shepard was about to take her first bite when she saw Kelly glancing around the table, that sad puppy dog look on her eyes. Shepard sighed and put her spoon down

"Be right back" she muttered and headed back to the elevator. She supposed it wouldn't be so bad getting Revan to join them, if she was ever going to trust him then she need to get to know him, having dinner with the rest of the crew was a good start.

She walked out into the cargo bay and headed towards Revan's room. She was pretty sure he could sense her coming, or whatever he did, but she still knocked on the side of the crate that served as his doorway.

"Come in Commander." He called; she could see him typing away on one of his three terminals, back to her.

"Do you ever take a break?" she asked, looking around his room. One of the work benches had the suit of green armor laid out very neatly on its surface. The other was covered in weapon components and tools. The rest of the room was very neat and orderly with nothing out of place.

"I have a lot to do" he answered her, a quickly flurry of typing and then he turned to face her. "I have almost completed a new heat sink for the weapons. I have also been modifying my armor to accommodate your shield technology."

He certainly had been busy. Like Mordin level of busy, at work for three days and he had already improved their weapon systems? It seemed highly unlikely, but it was obvious he was highly intelligent and he did have knowledge of completely foreign technology. If the weapons panned out then he would give them a huge edge over their opponents. Seems he was trying very hard to aid their cause. Now she just needed to know if she could trust him as a person and work with him.

"Well it's time for a break. The crew is having dinner, come up and join us."

"I am not that hungry." He replied quickly. Shepard sighed and took a step in the room; crossing her arms she fixed him with what Garrus had dubbed, her commander stare.

"Look if you ever hope to gain anyone's trust you can't be a complete recluse, come and eat with us. Try being sociable, it couldn't kill you." He looked at her for a moment before spinning around to type on the right monitor for several seconds.

"Very well" he answered rising from his seat.

"Jesus don't act like this is some sort of punishment." She said with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. He always seemed so dour when she talked to him.

"Sorry, I don't mean to. It has simply been a while since I ate in the company of others." She stared at his masked face.

"What you always eat alone?" He was probably exaggerating or something.

"For some time now yes." His voice was completely serious; she knew he was telling the truth.

"Well that's depressing. Well your new official orders are to have dinner with the crew every night."

"Very well"

Shepard turned and headed back to the elevator, he seemed to have gotten even more quite lately. She could remember the argument they got into, even a few sarcastic remarks that he had thrown around, she may have even remembered a joke at one point. But now he was just so serious, Miranda seemed to be getting along with him fine and hadn't mentioned anything about him being too quiet. Was he like this all the time or was it just with her?

They rode up in silence and when they entered back into the main room she could feel all eyes on them, or rather Revan. She retook her seat next to Garrus while Revan got himself some food.

"Well I'll be damned. Your persuasive powers did it again." Whispered Garrus with a chuckle

"I am just too lovable to say no to." She said with a smirk, causing her friend to laugh again. Revan took the empty seat between Miranda and Donelly. Most people were too intimidated to sit next to Miranda.

God she could feel everyone holding their breath as they waited for Revan pull down his hood and take off his mask. Everyone was trying not to stare, most, particularly the women, were failing miserably. Shit she even noticed Miranda cast a glance over at him, although it was way more subtle than the others and was probably born of an idle curiosity. Of course if she hadn't already seen his face she would probably be pretty curious too.

Revan lifted his spoon, as if to eat with his mask still on. Shepard almost burst out laughing as she felt everyone hold in a sigh. He suddenly put the spoon down and pulled down his hood, speaking as he took off the helmet

"How upset would all have been if I could eat with this on?" the helmet came off and everyone stared while Shepard laughed. Partially because it had been genuinely funny, but also because she was just surprised he had done that. A few more people laughed, including Garrus. Her smile quickly fell away as she realized this answered her question, it was her.

Revan set the helmet beside him and began eating, ignoring the stares he was still getting.

"So what's the deal with you wearing that thing all the time?" asked Joker "is it just to scare people?"

"Mostly, it's also a damn tough helmet." Answered the unmasked Revan

"Well if you want to scare people I would suggest not wearing a dress" chuckled the pilot. Shepard promptly elbowed him in the ribs, which he groaned loudly at.

"Where I come from it's considered a robe, and not at all out of place. Although your dress style here is very…different" god she didn't want to imagine how other people dressed if that was just a robe. Revan quickly began eating again, Shepard knew it was so people wouldn't ask him questions; it worked, for a while.

"So Revan what did you do before you got here?" asked Kelly, leaning forward slightly in anticipation for his answer.

"I was a…soldier" he replied stiffly. As he finished speaking Shepard remembered something from one of their first conversations.

"You told me you were a general." She said, intently watching his reaction. His expression did not change; he simply looked her way now.

"Yes, I was a general. I commanded the Republic and Jedi forces during the Mandalorian wars."

"Jedi, that's what you are right? People with your powers?"

"Yes Jedi are people with powers like mine" he answered, his expression may not have changed but she did notice how his voice leveled back out into a perfect monotone, how had that struck a nerve? She noted that instead of just saying yes, thereby agreeing that he was a Jedi, he had instead told her what the Jedi were, as if he weren't one. She filed that away for further consideration.

"Who or what are the Mandalorians?" asked Garrus, his interest clear now that they were talking about war.

"The MandalorianA were- are a warrior society. They are similar to your Krogan. They are a loose collection of clans under the leadership of a warrior with the title of Mandalore; the leader who started the war and led the Mandalorians was Mandalore The Ultimate"

"The ultimate?" scoffed Joker "guy was kind of full of himself" Shepard had to agree, the title was a bit ostentatious

"He was an incredibly brutal and skilled warrior and tactician." Revan explained quickly. Shepard didn't comment but instead listened; she couldn't help but be intrigued by Revan's words, something which most of the other people at the table shared.

"So were the Mandalorians as big and scary as the Krogan?" asked Donnely

"The Mandalorians are not one race; they were a culture, an idea. Being Mandalorian has nothing to do with your species or where you were born. Anyone can join them; it's a way of living, a state of mind, an ideal."

"You almost sound like you admire them" noted Kelly, saying what Shepard was thinking, his voice had taken on an almost certain…fondness.

"I am Mandalorian" he replied flatly. Shepard felt the surprise course through the room. She hadn't been expecting that, he had fought against his own people? "but the those I fought were not true Mandalorians, they had lost their way. Led astray by bastards like Cassus Fett they turned into violent butchers who slaughtered entire worlds to right some ancient injustice or to prove their strength. They were a disgrace, they had no honor. They attacked the Republic in hopes on conquering it; they conquered many worlds before they were finally stopped. Myself and others led the Republic forces to drive them back. Eventually I killed Mandalore and we crushed their armies."

The room was silent as everyone took in the story. Shepard had to admit that she was impressed, she knew he wasn't lying. He didn't seem like the type to make shit up, he was confident in himself and it was born of having tested himself in battle. Part of the reason she was impressed was because he looked pretty young to have been given command of entire armies and entrusted with protecting the entire Republic.

She didn't actually know how old he was. Looking at his face she would guess her age at the oldest, maybe a few years younger. Although if you looked into his eyes the man looked like he was a thousand years old. No matter how good he was at guarding his expressions and voice, he couldn't hide what his eyes had seen.

The story had been an incredibly short version of a war she was certain had contained horrible atrocities that he had witnessed. She wasn't going to press him for more details right now; she could understand not wanting to talk about certain elements from ones past. While she was curious and would probably ask him in the future, right now she would leave it; he had already shared quite a bit of himself for one night.

"So you were a hero" exclaimed Kelly, that bright look was back in her eyes. Shepard groaned inwardly, god her crush just got even bigger, first Garrus now Revan, who was going to be next?

"Depends who you asked" Revan said with a laugh devoid of any humor. He suddenly checked his omni-tool "if you will all excuse me, there is something I need to check on." He quickly rose, grabbing his helmet he put it back on as he left the room.

Shepard watched him leave then grabbed her and Garrus's dishes

"Alright everyone get some rest. Tomorrow we hit Korlus. Briefing at oh-nine-hundred." She put the dishes away and headed back to her cabin, she still had to plan the operation.

* * *

The shuttle bounced the ground team around as they encountered slight turbulence. Shepard grabbed the supports on the roof to steady herself, Garrus did the same while Revan seemed to cope very well on his own, his body only swayed slightly. Good space legs.

"Alright we are hitting this place fast and hard, I don't want to get caught fighting the whole damn place." This was supposedly a training ground for blue suns mercenaries, they didn't know their numbers. Miranda was standing by with the others in case they needed support.

The shuttle touched down and the door opened. She was the first one out the door, her shotgun scanning the LZ. Garrus quickly followed suit. Revan was the last off and he was scanning the area with his pistol.

He had passed out his newly completed thermal clips before the mission, he had made five of them and he claimed they would be able to fire off about a thousand rounds of ammo before being depleted; of course that number would change depending on the weapon being used. He said if it worked then he could modify the clips to be permanently installed in their weapons. When the guns weren't firing they would automatically cool, just like in the good old days.

They quickly moved forward in formation, Garrus on her right and Revan on her left, each two steps behind her. A woman's voice shouted over a loudspeaker and Shepard couldn't help but chuckle

"She must really like the sound of her own voice." Garrus chuckled and Revan pointed past a large mound of scrap metal.

"Enemies around the corner, four of them" Shepard nodded and readied her weapon, his abilities certainly were useful.

True to his words, they rounded the corner and saw a group of four blue suns mercenaries. Shepard immediately activated her charge, slamming into the lead mercenary. She shot him as he flew through the air. She turned to see Revan had also used his powers to propel himself in the middle of the group; he shot one mercenary in the face while he stabbed a second through the chest with a now ignited lightsaber, not laser sword. The last mercenary was dropped with two quick shots to the head by Garrus.

"Okay I am really starting to want one of those." Said Shepard, looking at the glowing red blade, it was a kick ass weapon.

Revan did not answer her as he turned away, at first she thought he was just being an ass but then she heard someone muttering

"Shit, shit, shit. Too much blood" she followed Revan's stare and saw a wounded blue suns merc laying on the ground a few feet away, he was bleeding from his side and staring at them in terror. She supposed with the big Turian beside her, the masked man holding a glowing red sword, and her own black and red terminus armor they did look rather intimidating.

"It really doesn't look that bad" muttered Garrus

"Hey!" she shouted walking closer to the wounded man "how about we patch you up if you give us some information?"

The man stared at her, he opened his mouth to speak but then his face twisted in pain and he grabbed his head, letting out a cry. What the hell? She looked over to Revan and saw his masked face was staring at the man.

"What are you doing to him?" she demanded, the man cried out again. He seemed to be in incredible pain. A few seconds later Revan turned to face her and the merc collapsed on the ground with a whimper.

"The leaders name is Jedore. She hired Okeer to make her an army of Krogan clones. The clones escaped somehow and are attacking the base. The mercenaries are struggling to contain them."

"What the fuck did you just do?" she demanded, taking a step closer to Revan. Letting her rage show. It looked like he had just tortured the man with his mind powers.

"I used the force to extract the information we needed." He answered simply; his tone only pissed her off more.

"We do not torture POW's!" she growled, almost punching him in the face. She was having a very hard time controlling her rage. That was one of the things she could not tolerate.

"Oh please he is just a bastard mercenary."

"That doesn't-"

"Would you change your mind if I also told you that he is wanted by the authorities because he raped and killed the girl who used to live down the street from him? He had a crush on her, he asked her out, she politely turned him down. Two days later he grabbed her when she was walking home, beat her, raped her, then killed her and ran away. She was sixteen, two parents and one younger sister."

Shepard stared at Revan, her conflicted emotions waging a war inside her. She was pissed at him for mentally torturing someone. But if what he said was true…rapists were the worst people in the galaxy, she would have no problem murdering every single one of them.

"I left no lasting physical or mental damage to this man. He on the other hand has destroyed several lives with one act. The world is not black and white Commander, it is shades of grey. You know this." Revan suddenly flicked his hand to the side and she heard a familiar pop of bones.

Looking back at the mercenary she saw him laying limp on the ground, his head twisted much too far to the side. She looked back at Revan, not knowing what to say. She knew he was right, hell she actually agreed with what he had done, rapists deserved a far worse fate.

"From now on you follow me lead" she growled "understood?" regardless of everything else he had acted out of order. She couldn't have that.

"Perfectly Commander. There are six more enemies ahead. I will follow your lead." Shepard just readied her weapon and continued forward. Revan falling in step behind her.

* * *

Revan ducked under the clumsy attempt to smash his face with the butt of the rifle. He slammed his lightsaber through the mercs chest, shooting his advancing companion in the face with a quick double tap.

The new thermal clips were performing well; he was also pleased at the upgraded firing rate of his pistol. He pulled the lightsaber from the mercenary in time to deflect a sniper round he had sensed before it was even fired. Revan reached out with the force and snapped the man's neck.

His barriers deflected a barrage of gunfire from two other mercenaries. He had sensed them but did not have time to deflect or avoid their attacks. Both got off about a half dozen rounds before they were dropped with two quick shots to the head.

"_Kandosii!" _he shouted to the Turian over the com. He had quickly established himself as a very skilled marksman.

"What?" replied the Turian, Garrus.

Revan chuckled as he dove for cover; two mercenaries had opened up on him from the left. The Commander was to his right, firing off shotgun blasts at the mercs trying to flank them. Garrus was to their rear providing very accurate sniper fire. They were in a large open part of the facility and had encountered man mercenaries and Krogan but Revan knew they were close to Okeer.

"Well done!" he clarified, sometimes he didn't realize when he slipped back into Mandelorian. Revan jumped up from the scrap metal he was crouched behind. He used the force to aim his shots while he threw his lightsaber at another that was nearing Garrus; he dropped both the mercenaries within five shots. The red blade decapitated the mercenary and sped back into his hand.

"Nice one!" called Garrus "you will have to teach me to shoot without looking!"

"If you two are done with your bro-mancing I could use some support!" bellowed the Commander "I got Krogan all over my ass!"

Revan was already moving before she had even spoke. She was blind firing her weapon at the three large aliens that had come up behind the mercenaries, cut them down and quickly proceeded to fire on the Commander.

Revan holstered both his pistol and lightsaber in one smooth movement before stretching out his hands and letting his powers loose. Purple lightning streaked from his fingers and engulfed the three heavily armored aliens. He could sense them being cooked alive in their armor; they writhed in pain, screaming savage screams before finally falling still after a minute of sustained force lighting.

Revan shook his hands as the powers fell away, leaving him with the familiar tingling in his fingertips. With all the enemies dead the Commander stood and stared at him, he couldn't see her face but he knew her eyes were wide by the tone of her voice.

"What the shit was that?" she exclaimed

"Force lightning, quite useful wouldn't you agree?" he asked with a chuckle, her amazement was clear.

"You can shoot lighting from your fingers?!"

Revan couldn't help but laugh again. He kept forgetting that these people had never seen force powers before. He supposed it was pretty impressive to see.

"Yes I can." He replied with a faint grin, she was pretty amusing when she was surprised or shocked.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side" said Garrus, walking up to them. Revan nodded to the Turian as he approached. He was actually starting to like the alien. He was a skilled soldier, Revan found him quite easy to get along with. He also seemed to have the Commanders complete trust.

He sensed an inner turmoil and rage in the Turian, and yet when he was around the Commander much of it seemed to fade away, her mere presence seemed to calm him, make him more confident.

Garrus could be trusted. He was certain of it. That was one member of the crew down, he still needed to find out about the others.

"Let's keep moving." Said Shepard, he quickly fell in step behind her as they moved through a doorway.

They moved up a flight of stairs and entered into a room where a blue skinned alien, an Asari, quickly help up her hands

"Shepard don't shoot! You know me!" the Commander quickly lowered her gun, but he noted she still kept her finger on the trigger.

"Who…your that girl who was working at Seran's facility!"

Revan quickly began reading the asari's surface thoughts as she spoke with the Commander. He paid enough attention to hear the conversation but most of his focus was on the aliens mind.

He could not feel any outward hostility from the woman; she was frightened but not enough to do anything stupid. He pushed a little further, still not far enough to alert her of his presence though. He had read the Asari could merge minds with others, sharing thoughts, feelings and other sensations. He did not know if they could sense his powers or not so he proceeded carefully.

As he went further he quickly sensed a foreign presence. It was dark and cold, almost mechanical. It lay deep down, silent…waiting. It reminded him of when he had sensed the Reapers just before his vision.

How were they present in this woman though? She was not a Reaper, he knew that much…so how? He remembered reading something about indoctrination, it was a theory that the Commander had proposed. She had stated that was how Sovereign had gained control of Saren. It was a form of mind control.

So was this woman indoctrinated? It would explain what he was sensing, if this truly was a Reaper tactic then she was a time bomb.

"Alright, get out of here. I suggest you try to stay out of trouble."

"Don't worry; I plan on staying far away from anything involving you!"

The Commander began moving through the next door while the woman ran past her, towards the stairs. He watched his two companions entered the room beyond, where Okeer was. The Asari was running past where he stood by the stairs.

The door closed and Revan reached out to wrap his hand around the woman's mouth, pulling her back towards him. He could sense her fear, but he pushed it away. She was a threat, the Reapers had done something to her and he couldn't wait to find out what it was.

With a flick of his wrist the knife fell from its hiding place on his arm and into his hand. He punched the blade through the back of her neck, severing the spinal cord right at the base of the skill, killing her instantly. She did not know she had been affected by the Reapers; there was no need for her to suffer.

She went limp against him and he used the force to lift her body away, guiding it down and placing it under the stairs. He returned the knife to its place on his arm and entered the room beyond.

"About time" muttered Shepard, only glancing back at him for a second before returning her attention to Okeer.

"I was just checking her terminal for useful information." He lied. She would not agree with what he had done. It had technically been murder. The Asari had done nothing wrong, but she would in the future, he felt it. That would not be enough for the Commander though; she would have let her go.

So he had done it, he did what needed to be done. No matter how unpleasant it had been. The Commander would never need to know, it would never need to trouble her. _What?!_ No he hadn't done it to protect her! He just didn't want to get into another argument, it would be pointless.

A blaring alarm snapped his attention back into the present. Damn her! She distracted his thoughts too easily.

"Quickly Shepard you get down there and stop here. I will stay and do what needs to be done." Said the Krogan, his voice sounding almost solemn at the end.

"Lets move it people!" shouted the Commander. Revan followed her and Garrus out of the room, grabbing both his lightsabers as they moved down the stairs.

As soon as they entered the room they came under fire. Several Korgan moved towards them from the middle of the room, they were clustered in a group. Three mercenaries, including the female leader fired at them from the far end. A large blocky droid lumbered towards them.

"Garrus take out that heavy!" Ordered the Commander, firing at the big droid,

"I will handle the Krogan" said Revan, igniting his lightsabers. The large aliens were clustered in a group, firing shotguns at them. He had noted that they liked to get in as close as possible, if he got into the middle of them then they would all converge on him and try to fight him in melee.

"Copy, I got that loud bitch!" Shepard activated her powers and sped across the room in a streak of blue. Garrus began firing at the large droid, every one of his shots hitting the thing in the head.

Revan used the force to propel him into the advancing Krogan. He stabbed both red blades through ones chest, sweeping them in opposite directions to cut the alien in half. The remaining four all charged him.

He spun to avoid a large metal fist, his lightsaber swept up to remove the attackers arm before he plunged the second through its face. He kicked a second Krogan in the chest, the force augmenting his strength to superhuman levels; he felt the aliens chest cave in as it fell to the ground, still not dead but damn close, a sweep of his lightsaber finished the job.

A third Krogan fired it's shotgun at him, he let the round connect, his shields absorbed the impact and he used the time to cut its weapon in half before cutting the Krogan in half at the waist. The final Krogan charged forward, he felt the attack coming but moved too slow, surprised by the aliens sudden burst of speed. It slammed it's thick shoulder into Revan's chest, throwing him back against the wall. He let his lightsabers drop to the ground; the Krogan was too close to use them properly, he should have brought his mother's crushgaunt's.

The Krogan slammed a fist into his gut, it hurt like hell, it probably would have broken a rib if he hadnt ben wearing armor. He ignored the pain, grabbing the pistol from his back he fired several rounds into his attacker's chest. The Krogan grunted and staggered back, blood gushing from his wounds. Revan let the knife fall into his hand again and shoved it through the things eye. It screamed in pain before he silenced it with two more shots to the head.

As the Krogan fell dead he looked up to see the droids head explode, the blocky body fell to the ground, a loud beeping began emanating and it's stump began flashing.

"Down!" shouted Garrus

"_Shab!" _Revan dove behind a nearby cloning tank as he shouted. Only a second later a large explosion filled the room. When he cleared he looked back to see the droid had been almost completely vaporized.

His attention quickly shot to the other side of the room where he sensed the Commander still fighting, he sensed she wasn't in danger though. It was confirmed when he saw her smash the mercenary commanders face into a nearby cloning tank two times before her arm began glowing blue and she punched the enemy commander in the throat.

He sensed the woman's life quickly fade, her entire throat crushed, she died gasping for air. She walked away from the body, not caring, his admiration for her began to go up before his head snapped up to the room where Okeer was. His life was rapidly fading away.

"Okeer!" he shouted. Shepard seemed understand him as they all bolted back up the stairs. A second later EDI informed them that the room was flooding with gas.

They ran into the room and saw Okeer slumped on the ground in front of his terminal.

"He is dead" Revan said plainly, feeling no life signs from the Krogan.

"Dammit!" shouted Shepard, walking over to his body. She looked up at the terminal as a message began playing. Revan moved past her and looked at the Krogan inside the tank. It was still alive. Its thoughts were dormant, evidently in some kind of comatose state.

"Alright Normandy pick us up. We are bringing Okeer's project aboard, so get some equipment to haul him in," The Commander turned to face him "unless you can carry it in with your magic power?" she added with a grin

"Actually I can" he replied grinning slightly.

"Nevermind Normandy. Our resident magician will handle it." Revan felt himself chuckle. This woman was surprising. She had gone from almost hating him to making jokes with him? He knew she still didn't trust him, but dammit she was turning out to be surprisingly easy to get along with.

Sure they had their moral differences; he knew that coming into this situation. He knew they would clash over things. They had already and they would again. She annoyed him to no end when she freaked out over how he used his powers or about his powers in general. But she seemed to be getting better. He smiled at this knowledge, he was gaining her trust, it was working.

He knew his presence at dinner, and revealing a bit about himself had gone a long way in helping ease her tension towards him. Normally he would be not so forthcoming about such information but he needed to get some ground with her. He couldn't keep her alive if she didn't trust him. Besides what he had told them was pretty simple.

They did not need to know the details of the wars, nor what he had done after. He would share harmless stories with them, he would socialize, integrate himself in the crew. It may have been a long time since he had bothered to do any of that, but he still knew how to do it. He knew how to earn the trust of others.

He wasn't doing this for pleasure or to make friends. He was doing this because he needed to do it. He needed to earn their trust; he needed to find out who could be trusted and who he would have to guard against.

So he would share some stories. Tell them about his galaxy; make them think he was opening up. It was actually quite easy to fool people into thinking you were letting them into your life, letting them really know you, when in actuality they knew very little, they knew only what you wanted them to. But they still had a smile on their face.

He would do what needed to be done. He would set aside everything to accomplish his goals, if he had to kill he would kill, if he had to lie and manipulate then he would. As always Revan would do what was required, like he had done with the Asari. The Commander would never know, she would only know what he wanted her to know, whether it be about his past or what he was doing behind her back. This is what he had to do if he was to gain her trust. So was exactly what he was going to do.

* * *

**Wow that took longer than I expected! This is actually about my third or fourth draft of this chapter. **

**So yes it was a pretty Revan heavy chapter, but a very important one I feel. I am trying to show how he is going to be interacting with the crew. You got a taste of it at the beginning then a better explanation at the end. **

**HE is actually going to be going around and checking which of these random people that Shepard is collecting can be trusted.**

**Also sorry if this wasnt as action heavy as you were hoping, other plot points ended up taking priority. With the way its unfolding in my head Horizon is going to be one gigantic battle! No promises but it is looking that way so far.**

**Oh I also hope it's not coming across that Shepard totally trusts Revan by the end of this chapter. I was just trying to show that during a mission (After he fell in line with her command) she was able to look past her reservations during the fighting and appreciate his abilities. **

**As for Revan being Mandalorian, well that is just something that I really wanted to do. I love the idea of him being Mandalorian, I think it actually adds alot more complexcity to his character, I just really like the Mandalorians! Later on we will get more information about his past, already gave you all a little bit. Did you catch when he revealed who the green armor belonged to?! ITS HIS MOTHER! You probably thought it was Meetra's didn't you?!**

**Also his view on the Mandalorian people during the wars are kind of my personal views. Going off what I know of them as a culture I feel like they did some pretty terrible things during the wars. They are a warrior people yes but they also have honor. Cassus Fett slaughtering the Cathar civilians is something I feel like a proper Mandalorian would not do. As shown by the Mandalorian who died trying to stop him (That's where Revan got his mask, BTW. That will be explained later in the story but it is cannon in the starwars universe)**

**Also revealed that the second pair of gauntlets are crushgaunts, for those of you who dont know what they are, I will show later but basically they were a weapon invented by the Mandalorians, they were so bad ass the the Mandalorians outlawed them! And Revan's mom owned a pair!**

**One more note, for those wondering. There is a reason that Revan always calls Shepard Commander instead of her name. It will be revealed soon!**

**On to the reviews!**

**Xanaris: Revan does have his pride but he realizes that to accomplish what he needs then he cant let it get in the way. He will probably ask for an apology, but it's not really a top priority. A good military leader doesnt let pride get in the way of doing his duty. **

**Invinoveri: I realize that his behavior may have seemed off in the beginning. That was because I feel like it is justafiable for him to act out of character. He has been torn from his galaxy and thrust into this one. All his work now meant nothing, he cant finish what he was trying to do. He was lost and trying to find a new purpose so he got frustrated when it was essentially being denied. He is a human, genius or now he is still susceptible to human emotions and outbursts. You can see his change later on when he finds out exactly what he needs to do, the knowledge of having a purpose allows him to revert back to his old self again. I hope that starts to come across anyway.**

**DSunny: Thank you very much for the kind words. As for making Revan too powerful thank you for bringing up your point. I agree that making Revan too powerful will just make the story boring if he faces no challenges. There will be no tension if he just does everything without breaking a sweat. I want to show he is powerful but I dont want to make him godlike. His challenges will become greater when they begin fighting the Collectors and later the Reapers. I already have an idea of how they will balance out his powers. If he seems too powerful now I apologize but lets be honest so far they have only fought mercenaries. They have nothing on the Mandalorians! But it will get a lot tougher for him! There will be a fair treatment of most characters (at least I hope it comes off that way) except Jacob! He will still be present but thats kind of it. Everyone else will probably get their own chapters and point of view moments. Actually I guarantee they will! The only one's I am having reservations about doing would be Mordin, Jack, and Legion, because they are going to be really tough to write! Especially Legion! **

**Okay I am done Rambling!**

**Thank you all for reading and the kind words of support!**

**I truly do appreciate the quality of the reviews that have been coming in. I love the input and constructive criticisms that everyone has been giving. Keep it up!**

**You stay classy Fanfiction!**

**(Trying out a new sign off phrase. Now I just need Ron Burgandy's mustache)**

**Also thinking of posting either a Skyrim fan fiction or a Saints Row fic (Recently replayed all the saints rows, so it's on my mind) Thoughts? I do have a Starwars one going as well. Let me know what you all would rather see, if any!**


	9. Chapter 9

Shepard tried to ignore her scarred reflection in the tank as she looked over the armored Krogan that waited inside. He looked so…young, not that she knew what made a Krogan look young or old, but compared to Wrex, well this one looked young to her.

Maybe she should have brought Garrus in here, who knew how this Krogan would react when she woke him up. She sure as hell wasn't going to leave him in the tank. Her fingers brushed over the pistol she behind her back, checking it was there for a final time she stepped forward and pushed the button to activate the tank.

She stepped back as the fluid began to flush away and the door lifted open. The Krogan dropped out, falling flat on his face before taking in a ragged breath, which caused a fit of coughing as he rid himself of the liquid in his mouth and lungs.

The Krogan's head looked up to her and his eyes narrowed. _Shit!_ Shepard knew that look, she reached for the pistol but the Krogan rushed forward with blinding speed, he slammed her into the wall with his shoulder while his forearm settled across her neck and pinned her there.

The air rushed from her lungs with the impact, dammit that had hurt. Getting hit by a Krogan was never fun, especially out of armor, but this one hit exceptionally hard, probably as hard as Wrex.

"Human. Female." Said the Krogan, sniffing with each word, while his ice blue eyes scanning her. Shepard was trying to pull her pistol free without alerting the large Krogan, at least she also had her biotics. She definitely should have brought Garrus.

"Before I kill you I need a name." His voice was rough, but didn't have the harsh edge that Wrex's had.

"My name is Commander Shepard." She replied, despite the threat she did not attack now that she had her pistol free. Most Krogan would have killed her outright; she still held her finger over the trigger, slowly aiming the pistol up to point at the soft skin under his chin. A quick shot would at least stagger him, follow it up with a charge and she could easily be free if the hold her had on her.

"Not your name, mine" Shepard froze, he didn't have a name? "the voices never mentioned ones, all I can remember are words like warlord, genophage, grunt. Grunt, it was the last one, it has no meaning, it will do."

"You want your name to be Grunt?" she asked, almost laughing, usually the term was used as derogatory or sarcastically.

"It's as good as any." He replied, eyes fixing on her again, she felt his arm press on her slightly harder, in response she finished lining up her shot "now I will do what is in my blood, fight and determine the strongest. May as well start with you."

"Well how about I offer an alternative?" she asked, frankly she didn't want to fight this Krogan. Also it wouldn't hurt to have him on her team, if there was one thing you could always count on it was the species love for a fight.

"What's that?"

"Join my crew. We are going to be fighting more enemies than you could ever hope for. Follow me and I promise to show you some of the best fights you will ever experience." Was it sad that she was actually being honest? Trouble really did love to follow her around.

"Mmm, that is…acceptable, for now."

"Really? That easy?" she asked, she had encountered way too many hostiles Krogan in her day, so maybe she was just judging Grunt unfairly.

"I care nothing for Okeer, his enemies, or his purpose. I will fight; if you can lead me to a good fight then I will follow you. But if you fight weak enemies then I will have to kill you." She knew the Krogan was completely serious, but it did not even faze her.

"Trust me, our enemies are not weak. They have already abducted and probably killed thousands, and the ones controlling them are even more powerful."

"Very well, I will fight for you." Grunt nodded, she lowered her pistol and smiled at him

"Good choice" he looked down at her arm moving. Seeing the weapon the Krogan stepped back then looked back up at her, he started laughing.

"Offer one hand and arm the other, wise Shepard. I may grow to respect you yet." She collapsed the pistol and looked to the Krogan.

"I could always use another Krogan buddy," She said with a grin, earning another grunted laugh from the large alien "feel free to explore the ship, its mostly humans but…" she hadn't considered this until now "we do have a Salarian and a Turian aboard, is that going to be a problem?"

"Unless they want to fight I don't care." Replied Grunt with a shrug, his tone was completely indifferent, she could detect no anger at all. That was a good sign.

"Well if you need anything don't hesitate to ask. We will be deploying on a mission soon, I will let you know when to be ready."

"I'm always ready for a fight." Shepard just grinned as she left the room; he really was just like a younger Wrex. The thought alone almost made her burst out laughing. The thoughts quickly stopped though as she saw a familiar masked form outside the door.

Shepard immediately noticed that he wasn't wearing his usual robe, it was gone and he stood now in the armor that he usually wore. She hadn't quite realized just how much armor he wore. The robe only revealed that his chest, hands and arms were heavily armored. Now she could see that he wore armor all over his body.

She immediately noticed the similarities between the armor he wore and that they had recovered from his shuttle, although his was colored black and deep red. She had always assumed he only wore the armor she could see. Damn how did he move so quickly in all that? She had picked up the chest armor from the shuttle and it was heavy! Heavier than any armor she had ever put on before. This explained why he had been so damn heavy when she carried him from the crash. She hadn't been present when they removed his armor and clothes to treat his wounds and hadn't given it a second thought until now. In the back…deep back parts of her mind she did note that without the added bulk of the robes he cut a pretty impressive figure.

She almost questioned why he was still in his armor but then she realized, Garrus never really left his armor, neither did Miranda…or Zaeed. Why was she the only one who ever changed after a mission?

"Revan? What are you doing?" she asked, pushing the random thought from her mind, he just seemed to be waiting; she did note that he was armed with his lightsabers, but that wasn't exactly unusual.

"Just waiting to make sure the meeting went smoothly," He answered calmly "seemed like it may go bad for a second there." She didn't even ask how he knew what was going on; dammit those powers of his could be freaky.

Shepard did have to admit though that his powers were proving extremely useful, and apart from what he had done to that young mercenary he had only been using them to help the mission, at least as far as she knew. Although she had no proof to the contrary. His modifications of their weapons was also a huge advancement. He certainly was proving himself to be very helpful.

"You just have to know how to speak their language" she replied, smirking slightly. She actually quite liked the Krogan, well she liked Wrex. She hated what had been done to them, part of her saw the necessity of it but she still didn't like it. She hoped Wrex found success in uniting the Krogan clans; if anyone could do it then it was him.

Revan just nodded in response, seems he was back to being distant around her again. After the mission she had hoped that his demeanor towards her would change, he had been pretty sociable while they were in the field but now that all seemed to have gone away. Just what was it about her?

Revan pressed the button for the elevator and they both loaded inside, he pushed the button for the CIC, a he glanced at her and she just nodded.

"What are you doing going up to the CIC?" she asked, he usually stayed down in his little sanctuary "not that I am saying you can't or anything!" she quickly added.

"I need to perform some modifications on my armor. Your shield technology is different from my own. As you use projectile based weaponry my own are ineffective." Of course it had to do with work.

"And here I thought maybe it was just to socialize" she chuckled, trying to bring some humor into their conversation.

"Isn't this socializing? I could have just left before you finished speaking with the Krogan"

"Fair point, although talking about work isn't really all that stimulating of a conversation" the elevator doors opened but neither of them got off; Revan turned his head to look at her

"Well I could tell you another war story"

"Still kind of work related, but I'll take it! Tell me at dinner, I have to go and talk to Mordin right now." She was surprised that he was actually offering to tell her something about his past. It may just be another war story but that did seem to be a big part of his past. At least he was finally opening himself up.

Revan nodded and they split off in the hallway. Shepard walked into the lab, seeing Mordin working away on his console. She cast a glance at the terminal used to order upgrades for the ship. Chakwas had said she found a way to heal her scars but it would take resources to do so, a fair amount of them too. She wasn't about to waste valuable resources just to get rid of these scars; she could deal with her personal shit on her own.

"Mordin, how are the counter measures coming?" she asked, standing on the opposite side of the table. The Salarian quickly looked up at her.

"Progress is good. Should be completed in matter of days. But have something else, to tell you. Lied before, but need to clear air now." Shepard gave him a confused look, what had he lied about? Their last discussion had been about his work on the genophage.

"Not complete lie. Did recon on Tuchanka. Found disturbing results. Krogan began to overcome the genophage, adapting." The Krogan were overcoming the genophage? The first emotion that went through her mind was joy. She knew how badly it had affected the Krogan, her talks with Wrex made that painfully obvious.

She knew that the Krogan weren't exactly the most peaceful race in the galaxy, but to essentially sterilize an entire race? They could barely produce enough children to survive as a species.

Deep down she did see what lead to the original deployment of the virus. She didn't agree with it but she did understand why the Turians and Salarians had done it. But that had been a long time ago, if the Krogan were evolving past it then that was good news. They had learned their lesson.

"That's good news then! The Krogan have suffered long enough." Mordin quickly shook his head.

"Narrow minded thinking. Krogan violent as a whole, all possible scenarios led to war. Personally led a team to disperse modified cure on Tuchanka and other Krogan-centric places."

"You re-infected them?" She blurted out, how could they do that?

"Had to! Ran thousands of scenarios, all pointed to new war with Krogan. This was best way. Best for other species, best for Krogan!" Mordins voice took on a slightly higher pitch and he had begun pacing slightly. He was trying to make her understand, trying to make her see why he had done it.

Shepards fist clenched in anger, she felt like screaming at the Salarian, telling what he had done was wrong. Partly for her own views on the matter but also she felt like she should do it for Wrex. Shit if he ever found out…there would be another war.

She looked at the Salarian and her anger began to ebb away slightly. He regretted it. She wasn't the best at reading facial and vocal expressions on aliens but even she could see sadness written all over his scared face. The fact that he was even telling her this signified that it weighed on him. She still didn't agree with it, hell he probably knew she wouldn't agree and would be angry with him, yet he had told her anyway.

"I get that this wasn't easy for you to tell me," she began, taking in a deep breath to calm herself "I do not agree with what you did Mordin. But I understand and I thank you for being honest with me."

"Wanted you to know what I did, what I can do. Will do what is necessary to complete mission Shepard. But know you need trust. No secrets Shepard. Well maybe a few." Mordin smiled at the last bit and Shepard couldn't help but smile back. He was being completely honest and open with her, something she actually hadn't expected from a former STG operator.

"Thank you Mordin. I appreciate your honesty. Talk to you later?"

"Of course. Come back when compiling samples, good time to chat."

"Will do." She said with a friendly smile. She was still upset by the information, but not upset with Mordin. He had done what he felt was best, she couldn't even imagine the circumstances he had been working under either. He had been honest with her about a subject he knew could alter her opinion of him, which went a long way with her.

She had to admit the crew was actually coming along better than she had expected. Most of the crew had been unknowns but she was actually beginning to trust them. Jacob was a soldier, he didn't like a lot of the shit that Cerberus pulled and from her talks with him he was actually beginning to trust her quite a bit, seemed to go a long way with him that she was willing to be open with him about pretty much everything.

Miranda was still a bit iffy. She was loyal to Cerberus; but she also seemed to be perfectly willing to follow Shepard lead. Miranda was cold but during their talks she had started to warm up a bit, they had almost borerlined on friendly a few times. She still wasn't sure about the woman but she had her hopes.

Zaeed certainly didn't have anything to hide about his past. He was very open about pretty much everything he had ever done, good or bad. He could be relied on in a fight and he didn't seem to care about Cerberus or their goals. He had been paid to do a job and from both his stories and his reputation alone she was pretty certain he would stick this through to the end. He had attacked a Turian ship with only twelve other people, come out alive and acted like it was nothing. So she wasn't too worried about him.

Grunt was still a bit of an unknown, she had literally just meat him. She had a soft spot for Krogan though, especially now that she had the image of a young Wrex in her mind.

Revan was the only other one she still wasn't sure about. He was proving himself very useful and seemed to be opening himself up to her and the others. She was a bit worried about some of his methods, but then again she was exactly a paragon of goodness herself. If things kept going the way they were then…well dammit he was going to win over her trust.

She still wasn't sure why he acted strangely around her outside missions though. From their talk on the elevator she was beginning to think it was just because he wasn't used to opening himself up. She wanted him to talk about himself when all he seemed to know what to talk about was work, perhaps it really was that simple. After all when he and Miranda got together all they were doing was working. She was just over thinking things.

* * *

The shields flared to life and Revan smiled faintly. It had actually been quite easy to incorporate the new technology to his armor, and the cells powering his original shields actually proved to be more powerful than those used in this new one. After the transfer he had created a new shield with a much greater lifespan.

A few test shots from Jacob had proved that the upgrade had worked and the shields were operational. At the moment he was finishing building a second of the upgraded shields. He had a spare power cell and decided to build a second unit for the Commander. Her combat style often landed her in the middle of her enemies, it was certain to help increase her survival chances.

One of his terminals beeped twice, he glanced over his shoulder to confirm he had a new message. Putting the finishing touches on the generator he spun in his chair and pulled himself in front of the terminal.

The transaction had gone through; he would have possession in three days. He had his first factory, in four more days he could afford the second. He really liked this world of Noveria. It was a private world with almost no oversight from government officials, which meant he could do what he wanted and not have anyone asking questions.

He quickly sent out several messages before closing the terminal. He had found a failing company on the planet, they owned a factory on the surface and he had quickly made them an offer that they could not refuse. He would need to make modifications to the factory but it was quicker than building one from scratch. He had already sent the orders to start implementing that changes he needed. By the time he got full possession it would almost be ready.

The second factory he was going to purchase was significantly more expensive, but it was a significantly larger factory. In fact it was the fourth largest in the galaxy, and the largest privately owned factory. It had been easy to get into contact with the owners and make them an offer that they couldn't refuse.

In his time working with the Cerka Corporation he had learned that private companies would sell anything if the price was high enough, and he had offered a very high price. The only problem he now faced was how he could hide what would be coming out of this factory. It was well known and had thousands of workers. His best bet would be to replace all the workers with droids. However that might get people talking and it still didn't solve his problem that this factory wasn't hidden away like the one on Noveria. He needed the production capabilities it offered but it was going to be one big headache.

He moved over to another terminal and began working. He would have to think more on that problem. Right now he still had to design what would be coming out of these factories. First up were his ground forces. Mercenaries would be too costly, unreliable, and he would be unable to keep them a secret for long. Droids were his best bet.

From what he had seen this galaxy only seemed to have three types of combat models. All of them were terrible. The only unit with any potential was the heavy mechs, but the fact that they emitted such a powerful explosion upon losing their head was a very poor design feature. It would hurt allied forces more than enemies, especially if deployed in mass.

What he needed was a droid designed for front-line combat. They would need a high intelligence so they could operate without an organic commander. The intelligence part would be easy. He had a copy of HK's programming on the database in his helmet, a few alterations and he would have the perfect intelligence.

He smiled at remembering his ever loyal droid companion. HK had been built for assassination; if he altered a few of the programs he could still leave the base intelligence level intact. He had programmed the droid with advanced knowledge of war, with pretty much everything he knew. All he had to do was make it more suitable to a front line combat role than assassination.

The droids of this galaxy could not even come close to measuring up to HK, even the Geth could not compare. Of course the Geth had developed into something more than mere droids. Still they only seemed to be effective in groups, whereas HK was highly intelligent and extremely lethal on his own.

Yes he was confident that using HK as a base would give him an incredibly efficient army. Now he just needed to design the droids. He already had a few blueprints on his terminal but he would actually need to construct one in order to test its effectiveness.

Revan quickly began typing on the terminal, making a few alterations to his most promising model before he began ordering the necessary components. He would need to convince the Commander to stop and pick up his shipment. He was confident that if he explained to her that he was building a droid to help on the mission then she would do it.

He would need to be weary though, she had fought against the Geth in her hunt for Seran, they had been the force he used to carry out his attacks. He would need to ensure her that this was not a Geth, also as far as she knew he was only building one. Not tens of thousands.

Droid designs done for the moment he moved to the final terminal. He still had to design ships. He had already decided not to use any models currently used in this galaxy, they had proved terribly inefficient against the Reaper, Sovereign.

Revan would need something that could stand up to the Reapers, but in order to do that he needed to know more about them. His efforts to gain information on Sovereign had been met with failure. The damn council had locked away all information they may have. Other reports stated that the majority of the ship had been swept up by looters. He would try to find a way to acquire some of the pieces but people would be very careful about selling them as it was highly illegal and the council seemed to be tracking down anyone involved.

So the ships were on hold for the moment. If it came down to it then he still had the plans for his own empires ships, they were his backup plan. He didn't know how effective they would be against the Reapers; he hoped he could get some better information soon.

His biggest concern was whether or not the Reapers used the same kinetic barriers that the other species used. The reports stated that Soverign had sustained a massive amount of damage before finally succumbing. If what they used were simply a much stronger version of kinetic barriers then he already had a massive advantage.

Kinetic barriers were only effective at deflecting objects travelling at extremely high velocities. He was certain that the turbolaser technology he had would bypass these barriers all together. On the off chance that they did not he was certain that they would still prove to be extremely effective against the barriers.

It would be difficult reproducing his galaxies weapons from scratch but he was confident that he could accomplish it. His second worry was the Reapers weapons; he did not know exactly what it was. The footage had had seen made him suspect some sort of plasma based weaponry, which would explain how it easily destroyed so many ships.

He wished he could get his hands on Sovereign to do a complete study but the odds of that were low. If he hadn't uncovered any new leads by the time he purchased the factory then he would begin creating production on his already existing ships. He needed to start production as soon as possible; he could only hope that he could get some useful information.

A quick glance the clock on his HUD told him that right now it was time for a war story. He had already decided which one to share with the crew tonight. He would tell them about the slaughter of the Cathar people, which would elicit an emotional response from most of the crew, which he knew would include the Commander. Then he would tell them about the battle to retake Taris. It had been a hard fought victory but they had finally freed the city after many years of occupation. It would be a good note to end on, a tale of victory would certainly help brighten the crews spirits, it would also reinforce his accomplishments and abilities, which would likely lead to people trusting him more.

Revan rose and began heading towards the elevator. The Commander had seemed pleased by his offer to share another story; it seemed that he was earning her trust. He was still wary however, she was not an idiot, there was a good chance that she would pick up on what he was doing, he would just have to wait and see. If it came to that…well he didn't know what he would do. Eventually she would want to know more, if it came to that then he could always lie.

* * *

**Sorry for the short chapter everyone, I wanted to get this out before christmas day as there is no chance for me writing on the 25th or 26th. However I already have the majority of the next chapter done so it should be up in the next three days at the most. Just wanted to get this out there to tide you all over until I can get that chapter up.**

**Going to make this note quick as I have to run and continue with the craziness that is the holidays. **

**Yes everyone HK will be coming into the mass effect universe, well at least a new HK. **

**Also began to show how Revan is going to build up his forces. **

**The Turbo laser technology negating the shields in ME is based off my own research and what I may do with the story. If anyone has any information on the subject feel free to PM me!**

**Sorry for the lack of action in this chapter, needed to deal with these topics first. Next chapter is all about Jack's rescue and is pretty action heavy. **

**Thank you all very much for reading and reviewing, I appreciate all the kind words and helpful reviews. I will go back to addressing specific reviews on the next chapter. **

**Again sorry for how short this is. The next chapter is shaping up to be long and action heavy so I promise to make up for it!**

**Hope you all have a happy and safe holidays! **

**You stay classy!**


	10. Chapter 10

Shepard glanced back at the Krogan lumbering behind her, he didn't have the grizzled and scarred face of Wrex but he still managed to look quite intimidating. Good, that would come in handy for this mission. Technically it really shouldn't be a mission, just a simple pick up, but then again Eden Prime had been a simple pickup.

She still couldn't quite believe that they were actually picking up a prisoner to join the crew. Yes her biotic powers were off the charts, it still didn't sit well with her. She would be keeping a very close eye on this Jack.

They exited the airlock and entered onto the Purgatory, seemed a fitting name for a prison floating in the middle of nowhere. She could feel Garrus becoming tense as they stepped onto the ship, like her he was very wary of this mission and the mercenaries running the ship.

Three guards waited at the top of a ramp, watching the oncoming party, one of them, a Turian, stood in the middle and greeted them.

"Welcome to the Purgatory Shepard. Your package is being prepped and will be ready for you to collect in a few moments. You'll need to relinquish all your weapons before you proceed."

Shepard almost laughed. They actually expected her to surrender her weapons on a ship filled with mercenaries and prisoners? Just how stupid did they think she was?

"Yeah that's not going to happen," she said, crossing her arms and fixing the helmeted Turian with a hard stare "so either you let me through or I will take my business elsewhere."

The guard obviously did not know how to react. He was probably thinking that he would get into trouble for turning down so much money, but he also had to follow protocols. The door opened and a new, unhelmeted Turian walked in.

"Commander I am warden Kuril. You must understand this is just standard procedure." His voice was calm and his brown eyes stared into her green ones, he was obviously trying to be intimidating but it didn't work on her. Why did so many people try to do that to her?

"My standard procedure is to never give up my weapon. I didn't give it up when I met with the council I am not giving it up now." She had actually been surprised during her very first meeting with the council that no one had taken her weapon. They must have been protected by a shield or something. After Sarens attack C-Sec had tried to take her weapons and she promptly told them to go to hell.

Kuril continued to glare at her but she did not look away, she had yet to lose one of these. She was proved victorious when the Turian looked away and gestured to his men.

"Let them pass, I am sure our facility is secure enough to handle three armed guests. Follow me Shepard and you can collect Jack."

The guards moved aside and Shepard moved up to follow Kuril through the door, she could see the guards giving Grunt very worried glances, it made her grin faintly. Yes it definitely had been a smart move to bring him along. Revan had seemed slightly upset that she had left him behind, but he also seemed to understand her reasoning.

She needed to give Grunt a trial run, and while they shouldn't see any action on this mission she also just needed to see how he would act outside of combat. She also wanted Revan to keep working on his upgrades for their shields. He had installed a new generator on her suit before the mission, claiming it would make her shields much more powerful. He had promised to try and recreate the power source he had used from his own personal belongings.

It had actually surprised Shepard that he had given her the upgrade in the first place. Apparently he had only had a limited supply of those foreign power cells. He had insisted on installing it onto her suit. It was a nice gesture, although she knew for him it was entirely a matter of practicality.

She was actually starting to like Revan, not just for his technology but as a person. He seemed more and more willing to share stories of his past with her and the crew. He was still a bit reclusive but he seemed to be getting better.

Although she did have one problem with him still. The stories he told were all well and good but he had still never really shared anything personal. He only spoke about what he had done and the war he fought in. Never anything about him as a person. Nothing about his friends or family. She could understand not wanting to talk about certain parts of ones past, hell she was like that. But she did open up to people on occasion.

Garrus knew all about her past. True it had taken some time for her to tell him all of that but even before that she had been pretty open. People asked her personal questions all the time and she never really minded answering.

Was she being too hard on him? Maybe she was just setting some stupid standard for him. So what if he didn't want to reveal anything about his personal life? That was his business; she didn't really need to know all of that. She wanted to, but was it unfair to hold it against him for not sharing it? To be fair she had never really asked him any personal questions…maybe she should, maybe he would actually answer- Jesus was Kuril still bragging about his ship?

"When can I get Jack?" she asked, hiding the annoyance in her voice.

"Go down that hall to out processing, I will go and make sure the money has cleared." The Turian didn't wait for her to respond before he left down a different hallway.

"I thought he would never shut up," muttered Garrus

"I imagined killing him the entire time," said Grunt, with a smile.

Shepard laughed as she headed down the hall; at least she had good friends. Yes Grunt was brand new to the crew but dammit she liked him, she really did have a soft spot for Krogan. Oh how Revan would punch her right in the face if he knew.

Shit that really killed her good mood. Maybe she should just apologize to him for how she acted. She had never actually done that and she was starting to feel bad about it. He had been trying to prove himself, he deserved an apology. She would talk to him when they got back.

They were almost at the door Kuril had mentioned, off to the side she saw a guard kicking the living hell out of a prisoner in his cell.

"You don't even get good information that way," muttered Garrus "eventually they admit to anything just to make the pain stop."

Shepard stopped and looked at the scene, she was pretty sure that wasn't an interrogation. She stepped forward to the guard outside the cell.

"What's he in for?" This was a prison ship; the guy probably wasn't exactly innocent.

"He is a serial killer. Murdered sixteen people before he was caught, Seven of them were kids no older than ten."

So the guy definitely was a bastard. But was this guard just beating the hell out of him for the sake of it or was there an actual reason. Yeah she didn't condone torture, but she wasn't sure if she would exactly defend someone like that.

"So what's he doing?" she asked, inclining her head towards the guard inside the cell.

"One of the children was his cousin," the guard answered flatly, glancing back at the scene.

Shepard knew she could probably stop this, but did she want to? She remembered the confrontation with Revan when he had ripped information from that mercenaries mind. She had berated him for his methods, and then he had told her about the mercenaries past. Suddenly it didn't seem so bad. He was right; the galaxy wasn't black and white. People who caused that kind of pain and suffering deserved just as much in return, didn't they?

Shepard turned and continued down the hallway without saying another word. There was probably a time when she would have put a stop to that, even though the prisoner definitely fit the definition of evil. She would have told the guard that doing what he did just brought him down to the same piece of shit status as the prisoner. But she didn't find herself caring anymore.

If she was brutally honest with herself she could probably count the things she cared about on one hand. She hadn't always been like that, had she? Ever since her…reconstruction she had felt so wrong. Her morals seemed to be taking a back seat more and more. Before her death she would have kicked Revan's ass for what he had done to that mercenary, but now she just didn't care. _It's just the reprogramming taking effect, don't worry about it_.

Shepard pushed the dark joke from her mind as she continued on. This was not the time for self-discovery; she had a mission to complete. She followed the signs to outprocessing and opened the door. Shepard stared blankly at the cell while Garrus cocked his head slightly.

"Apologies Shepard," said Kuril over the ship com "but you are more valuable as a prisoner than a client. Step inside and we wont have a problem."

Shepard felt herself start to laugh, just a chuckle at first but then it developed into a full fledged laugh. She probably looked crazy right now but she didn't care, it was just so funny! He really expected her to just give up? Just like that? This warden really was something.

She turned, wiping a tear from her eye. God she hadn't had a good laugh in a while, maybe she was going mad. She glanced over to Garrus who was looking at her with some amusement while Grunt was rolling his shoulders, the look he have her voicing his thoughts, "_Can I kill something now?"_ she grinned and pulled her shotgun free.

"Oh I am going to kill your stupid ass," she said with a final chuckle, knowing Kuril could hear her.

"Guards to out-processing!" Shouted Kuril, in response the hallway doors opened and four guards charged through.

Shepard wasted no time in activating her charge to slam into the rear soldier, sending him flying. She spun, smashing a second in the face with the butt of her gun, staggering him a step before she shot him in the face, completely destroying his head.

Grunt charged in right behind her, slamming into the leader with his entire weight, she could hear the man's bones breaking as he slammed into a nearby wall before sinking to the ground, completely unmoving.

Garrus dropped the fourth guard with a very precise headshot; meanwhile Shepard had turned back to the first guard and shot him as he tried to rise. She signalled for the others to follow and continued around the hall, she almost reloaded her weapon before remembering Revan's upgrade.

The next group of guards came at them staggered, which was stupid. Garrus immediately dropped the first one to come around the corner with a double tap from his rifle. Grunt charged past her slamming his forehead into the second guard, the man dropped to the ground and the Krogan quickly shot him twice for good measure.

Shepard dealt with the final guard by simply unloading two rapid shots into his chest without breaking her stride. The others quickly reformed on her.

She walked through the door where a technician quickly turned and began firing a pistol wildly at her; only one of the three shots actually hit her before she dropped him with a quick blast.

"Idiot." Muttered Grunt, stepping over the body without a second glance.

If the man hadn't shot at her she wouldn't have killed him, yeah idiot about summed it up. She quickly moved to the console and activated it; the man had been trying to move Jack before they got to the room.

Really? Kuril had been stupid enough to attack her fifty feet from the person she came here to get? Damn that was a stupid Turian. She began activating the release protocol when Garrus looked over her shoulder.

"That's going to open every cell on this block." He informed her, damn she hadn't noticed that.

"This is why I usually let you handle computer work," she said, giving him a grin "any way to avoid that?"

"It will take a while; it's a security procedure, cant bust one person out without setting everyone else free."

"Well looks like we are about to have a prison riot on our hands," she looked over to Grunt, a gleam had entered his eye and she smiled at him "get the Krogan battering ram ready." Grunt did a rather slow laugh that sounded both intimidating and oddly…cute. Shit did she really just call a Krogan cute?

Shepard pushed the button and moved to the viewing window, gripping her shotgun tightly. They would have to get down to Jack quick then they could make their escape. The way back to the ship was far, if everything went well five minutes and they would be out of here.

* * *

"No shit?" asked Zaeed, admiration clear in his voice "I could use one of those Basilisk's"

Miranda just caught the tail end of the conversation as she came into the cargo bay. The mercenary had wandered down here close to an hour ago. Revan had been working on a new upgrade for a sniper rifle and the two had been talking ever since.

"They were definitely an effective weapon. There was more than one battle were the damn things rained like fire onto cities. Best way to take them out was to kill the rider. Of course they could still work without a rider but they were less efficient."

She had no idea what they were talking about, something from Revan's universe obviously. She had to admit that the man was intriguing. He had quickly shown himself to be a technological genius, the upgrades to their weapons had given them a huge edge over…well everyone.

Miranda had quickly sent the schematics of the new thermal clip back to the Illusive man, which had caused the rarest of emotions in the leader. Surprise. Revan had very possibly changed the face of warfare in this galaxy, and he had done it in under a week! When he presented the upgrade it had almost been a half dismissal, like it wasn't much of an accomplishment.

Now she had heard that he had even upgraded their personal shield technology. Apparently he had only been able to perform the upgrade once, and he had given it to Shepard so Miranda had yet to get her hands on that technology. She was confident that he would share it with her though. She could get Cerberus technicians to reproduce it on a massive scale, that coupled with his weapons upgrades would give humanity a huge edge over the Reapers.

Yes the man definitely was fascinating, not only was he a genius but he had proven himself to be an incredibly capable soldier. Then there was also his almost magical abilities. Humans had compared biotics to magic upon their discovery. Revan's abilities made biotics seem like cheap parlor tricks. She had seen the helmet footage from the mission on Korlus, she had seen him shoot lightning from his bloody hands.

What gave him these abilities? Was it similar to biotics? Professor Solus had taken a sample of his blood but according to his results there was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. According to his blood he was just an ordinary human, but he wasn't.

Revan turned at her approach, she knew he had the abilities to sense others, he probably knew the second she came into the room.

"Miss Lawson." He greeted, inclining his helmeted head in a nod. He was not wearing his usual robe, like the night previous, instead just his read and black armor. She even found his armor fascinating. It was incredibly heavy, but stronger than anything she had ever even heard of. Yet it did not look overly bulky, sure it was not tight fitting armor by any means but usually such heavy armor would mean it was bulky. This armor seemed to be incredibly well crafted though, custom made to fit the wearer perfectly.

"Revan," she replied, smiling politely and returning his nod "Zaeed."

The mercenary returned her nod, giving her a quick look up and down. Miranda barely even noticed she was well used to it by now; she wasn't oblivious to the fact that she was attractive. It's how she had been made. At least the mercenary wasn't one of those cowards who tried to hide the fact that he was attracted to her, weak men were always annoying. Not to mention a turn off, not that she could say she was even remotely attracted to the scarred man.

"I got a feeling this is going to be above my pay grade, catch ya later Revan." Zaeed gave them both a nod before heading towards the elevator.

Miranda returned her attention back to Revan, he was a different story. Surprised at herself Miranda quickly pushed those thoughts away, yet she still noticed what a nice figure he cut outside of that robe. _Focus Miranda_.

"What can I do for you?" Asked Revan, he began working on the internals of the sniper rifle, although she could tell he was not dismissing her, merely multitasking.

"I actually came to ask you about the upgrades you made to our shield technology." She said, glancing at his work as she spoke. He looked up at her before answering.

"I'm reducing the recoil on this piece of _osik,_" his masked face glanced up at her as he answered, reading her mind. Miranda froze when she realized that was actually a possibility. He had promised that he wouldn't, but how would they know? "but about your original topic. I used a power source from my own shield device which proved to be much more powerful, it should yield very good results. Unfortunately I only had the one and I gave it to the Commander, I am trying to construct more though."

Miranda nodded, if he could create those power sources from scratch then that would make the technicians jobs much easier. She stood there watching him work, realizing that he had answered everything she had come down here to talk about in under a minute.

She could just turn around and leave now, it made sense, she didn't need anything else from him. Yet she stood there watching him, trying to come up with something else to say. _What are you doing?_ Miranda couldn't answer herself as she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"What was that word you used? _Osik?_" She repeated the words perfectly, despite its odd sounding nature. She had always been good at leaning new languages. She was fluent in six human languages, three of them now dead ones.

"It's Mandalorian," Revan replied, he glanced up at her again "basically it means shit." He chuckled faintly, barely audible through his helmet.

Miranda found herself smiling faintly "_Osik_," she repeated to herself "I like the sound of it." The language certainly had a different sound to it. She had heard him mutter a few words before but never anything more than that.

"Never took you for much of a curser." Revan said with another chuckle. He had stopped his work now and leaned lightly on the work bench beside the firing range, masked face staring at her.

Without even seeing his eyes Miranda could feel the weight of his gaze. She had actually only seen his eyes a few times during dinner. He usually wore his hood while he ate dinner, obscuring his eyes. But the first night Shepard had made him join them, and last night he had been without the hood.

She had never seen eyes like his before. It wasn't their color, no matter how nice that steel grey looked. What made them stand out was their depth, their weight. One look in this mans eyes and it was apparent that he had seen far too much war in his life. She wasn't sure how old he was, thirty at most, yet he had eyes that she hadn't even seen in eighty year old black ops veterans.

"I just like learning new languages. It's a bit of a hobby of mine." She enjoyed learning new things in general, but languages had always been a passion of hers.

"Well you won't find another language like _Mando'a_- that's the technical name for Mandalorian. It's a very unique language. In the past few millennia it has changed very little."

"That's impressive," she said. Most languages underwent many changes throughout history, either due to natural progression or outside influences "I don't think I have ever heard you say anything more than singular words though."

"_Ib'tuur jatne tuur ash'ad kyr'amur,"_ Revan spoke as he crossed his arms, "today is a good day for someone else to die. Kind of a Mandalorian motto."

Miranda had to admit that she did like the way that the language sounded. It had a truly unique sound, completely unlike anything she had ever heard before. In the back of her mind she also noted how nice it sounded in Revan's voice.

Like the language he spoke, he had a very unique voice. It was not grating and gruff like Zaeed's, it was not the stereotypical voice one would associate with such a powerful warrior. His voice was surprisingly smooth and actually sounded very pleasant, yet it was also dripping with an undercurrent of…power. She had never attributed that ability to anyone's voice, not even the Illusive mans. Revan had the kind of voice that could intimidate a Krogan, yet at the same time it had the ability to be incredibly calming, almost enough to fall asleep to.

Miranda shoved that last thought away immediately because she knew the images that would quickly follow. She wasn't about to be an idiot and deny that she found him attractive on several levels. However it was nothing more than a simple attraction because of his mind and abilities…maybe a bit of his personality. But it was nothing serious; she just didn't want these rogue thoughts distracting her.

"I like the sound of it," she said, nodding "it, seems like a very straight forward language."

"It is. Mandalorian's don't mix words. We say what we mean, polite or not. We honor what we say as well. An adoption for example, is carried out by a single sentence, once it is said then it is done."

Miranda stared at him, slightly shocked "You adopt someone just by saying that you adopt them?" That was ridiculous; adoption here was an entire process. There were papers to be signed, legal loopholes. All of it was usually designed to ensure the child went to a decent parent, it didn't always work but at least it was some kind of insurance.

"The Mandalorians are a very honor bound people's. Nothing is more important than clan and family. An adoption is not something taken on lightly. When someone does adopt another they are vowing to protect and raise the child as their own flesh and blood. _Ni kar'tayl gai sa'ad- _I know your name as my child"

Miranda listened as Revan spoke the words. It seemed so illogical, all you had to do was say a single phrase and a child was yours? Yet even the phrase itself seemed so weighted, it seemed so touching. Revan was Mandalorian and she could not imagine him ever uttering those words unless he truly meant them.

She admitted that his views on the Mandalorians was quite interesting. He fought against them, he defeated them, and yet he still considered himself one. From this talk it was clear that he still fervently believed in the people's core values and beliefs. He had said that they had lost their way and that was why he had fought them.

Either way it was still quite intriguing. It seemed that the language had deep ties in their culture. One could not likely learn the language without learning about the culture.

"I don't suppose you would be willing to teach me the language?" She asked, the thrill of learning exciting her.

"I was actually going to speak to the Commander about that. I think it would be a good idea to teach everyone a few combat phrases. Your translator chips can't decipher the language so it would give us an edge in the field when we couldn't rely on secure com's for coordination."

Miranda had to admit that it was a very good idea. There was always the possibility of coms being hacked or jammed, requiring them to communicate when enemies could hear them. Yes it was a very good idea. He was proving that his stories about his accomplishments as a commander were not false.

"While I have you here, would you wind assisting me with something?"

The request caught her off guard; he had never actually asked her for help in any of his projects "Of course," she answered quickly.

Revan pushed himself off the bench and walked into the center of the cargo bay, she followed close behind. He turned to face her then took a few steps back, holding out his hand for her to stay. She still had no idea what he was doing; he finally explained when they were about two dozen feet apart.

"I want you to cast a simple form of biotic attack towards me." He said simply.

Miranda cocked her head at him slightly, "What?" He actually wanted her to attack him?

"I need to confirm a theory I have. It doesn't have to be anything powerful, just something simple," he squared off against her and nodded "whenever you are ready."

She gave him a weary look, unsure of exactly what he was doing. She supposed that h must have a reason though. Activating her biotics she threw a simple blast at him, she felt the familiar tingle through her body as the blue orb flew from her hands and sailed towards Revan.

He thrust his hand out, almost as if he was going to catch it, but the orb simply struck his hand and staggered him back a step. Revan righted himself and looked at his hand, was he surprised by the result?

"That's what I thought," he muttered before looking back up at her "I can't sense biotic attacks nor can I stop them with the force."

"You can sense attacks?"

"All force sensitive possess a form of precognition, my own abilities are extremely powerful, yet I cannot feel these attacks. I believe it has something to do with Element Zero, but I am not yet certain. Either way it's good to know. Thank you Miss Lawson." He said, inclining his head.

She smiled slightly at his formality "You can just call me Miranda."

Revan did not answer as he suddenly stiffened.

"What's wrong?" Miranda asked quickly.

"The Commander is under attack." He replied quickly, moving past her with determained strides, towards the elevator "EDI raise the commander, she is under attack."

Miranda followed him to the elevator, they had gotten no word. It must be his powers again, once more she was impressed. They made it to the CIC where Revan quickly marched towards the airlock. Miranda now realized that he was still armed with his lightsabers while she was unarmed.

"Revan we should wait until we hear from Shepard." She said, his intent was clear. Shepard would call them if she needed back up, although Miranda did admit this was troubling news.

"I have Shepard." Said EDI, immediately the woman's voice filled their coms

"This is Shepard, we are fine. Blue suns tried to double cross us. We are releasing Jack now, along with the whole cell block. Shouldn't take any longer than…huh"

"What is it?" Asked Revan immediately. His voice was completely calm but the soothing element had gone from it and it took on its more serious tone.

"Jack is small," said Shepard and the Krogan, Grunt, at the same time "Shit those mechs are activating! Double time it down the-" a loud explosion cut Shepard off, then a second one that shook both the Purgatory and the docked Normandy, sounded even louder.

"What just happened?" Asked Miranda, immediately moving to a terminal to see the damages.

"Jack just blew a hole through the damn wall! We are following, may be longer than five minutes." It was clear from her voice that Shepard had started running, another explosion rocked the ship.

"Come on! I wanna see how long she can last." Laughed the Krogan

"Shepard do you need backup?" Asked Revan, taking another step towards the airlock.

"Negative, but keep an eye out for anyone trying to get on board, there is a riot going on now, good chance this ship is going down and we have one of the only rides out of here. Keep you updated, Shepard out."

Shepard was correct, if the situation got bad then both guards and prisoners would be swarming to get onto the ship. How dare these pathetic mercenaries betray Cerberus! They really did have no idea who they were messing with.

Miranda quickly began sending a message to the Illusive Man, at the same time dispatching orders for EDI to assemble the crew to readiness. This could get very ugly.

She turned as she heard Revan continue walking towards the airlock "Where are you going?" She asked

"I will go and hold the hallway, make sure the Commanders escape route is clear." He answered, not breaking his stride.

"Call if you need help." She was confident that he could handle the situation himself, still she was rousing the crew and they would all be on standby. Damn Blue Suns.

* * *

Shepard slammed the guard into the wall, arm against his throat as she fired her pistol four times into his chest. She let him fall and spun around, firing another shot through a charging prisoners head.

Grunt was to her right; having the time of his life beating down a group of prisoners that had tried to rush her but the Krogan had intercepted them. Garrus was beside her giving the Krogan fire support, taking out the few prisoners that had managed to get guns.

The whole ship was coming down as Jack kept tearing her way through. For such a small girl she certainly was a hurricane of destruction. Shepard moved forward and fired a shot with her carnifex, dropping a prisoner while Grunt grabbed the last by the collar and slammed his face down onto the prisoners, the force of the blow snapping his neck.

"Lets keep moving!" Shepard shouted over the sound of the riot, explosions, and the ships automated warnings. Her squad quickly formed up an her and they ran through the next hole in the wall "Normandy anyway you can track Jack?"

She rounded the corner, keeping her pistol up. A prisoner immediately ran at her, slamming into her before she could get a shot off, they wrapped their hands around her throat, eyes wild as they tried to choke the life from her. Shepard quickly smashed her fist into the side of the prisoners head, the grip on her neck weakened and she drove a knee into their gut. The prisoner doubled over and she grabbed them by the back of their collar and slammed their head into a nearby wall, holding them up she shot them in the back of their head. Blood, brain, and bits of skull splattered across the wall and ground. She let the body fall without a second glance.

Shepard was not in a good mood. Jack would not stop running; the failing ship systems had released even more prisoners. But worst of all was that she lost her fucking shotgun! She had blown the head off a heavy mech only to be tackled to the ground by a stupid prisoner. The gun skidded from her hand towards the mech and had been lost in the explosion. This was not a good day, she really liked that gun.

"She is nearing the airlock where the Normandy is docked," said EDI "so the trail of destruction shows anyway. The next room should take you near the main hallway where you can get to the airlock."

"Thanks EDI. Anyone try to get on the ship yet?"

This time Grunt took the lead down the hallway, the prisoners couldn't even knock him back a step if they got the drop on him.

"Revan went off ship to keep the hallway secure; he has only reported minor contacts."

"Alright keep me posted, Shepard out." She really hoped they found Jack before she reached the airlock, and Revan.

She knew that Revan would not do anything but Jack was on a warpath and if she tried to go up against Revan, well those two could probably destroy a city in a fight. They didn't have that much room.

Grunt stopped at the hole in the wall, with a nod from her he moved through. The Krogan was doing very well. In the thick of combat he got a bit excited and liked to kill everyone as up close as possible, but he listened to order fairly well and had yet to charge off on his own.

The room beyond was in complete chaos. Guards and prisoners fought across the entire room. On the far side she could see Kuril desperately trying to organize a defence, his Revenant cutting down groups of prisoners.

"Alright keep a tight formation, Grunt you take the lead, punch right through the room and get to the exit. No time to kill everyone, we need to get out of here."

Grunt just did his slow laugh while she and Garrus formed up slightly behind him. The Krogan bellowed as he charged forward, smashing prisoners and guards aside with one hand and firing his shotgun with the other.

Shepard raced to keep up with him, firing shots at anyone that tried to get too close. Garrus's Mattock was firing at a very high rate to keep up with the sheer number of hostiles. Shepard was really wishing she had packed a third weapon for this trip, she usually brought a rifle along but she had opted to give the upgraded Mattock to Garrus, not thinking she would need one.

A guard fired a burst at her as they ran past his position, Shepard staggered slightly but her shields held and she fired four quick rounds back at him, two striking him in the chest. She didn't stop running as the guard returned fire, but this was much more inaccurate and was quickly cut off as he was swarmed by prisoners.

"So this is what it feels like," muttered Shepard, shooting a prisoner on the head as they came up on Grunts side.

"Like what feels like?" Asked Garrus, Mattock still firing.

"Being the one following," She glanced over at Grunt, laughing at the change in perspective "you're all just staring at my ass the whole time aren't you?"

"What ass?"

"Oh fuck you!" If she hadn't needed to shoot a guard in the head then she definitely would have tripped him.

Garrus just laughed and continued to cut down the enemy. They were almost at Kuril and the few guards that had rallied to him.

"Shift fire forward! Take out Kuril and his men!" Shepard shouted over the chaos and began firing at the guard to Kuril's left, who had a missile launcher. Garrus dropped one carrying a sniper while Grunt was charging right for one who was glistening with tech armor.

Kuril and the guards quickly returned fire but Grunts sudden burst of speed brought him right into their midst. Shepard activated her charge and followed the young Krogan. Her target was Kuril and she slammed right into him.

The Turian was thrown back, his weapon firing wildly as he flew through the air. Shepard began following him but was thrown forward as pain exploded in the back of her skull. She smacked into the ground, quickly rolling over to see a guard standing over her preparing to shoot.

She quickly entwined her legs with the guards and with a flex of muscle threw the man to the ground, using the momentum of his fall to pull her up. Shepard slammed a fist into the guards face before throwing a second, biotical infused punch into his throat, killing him almost instantly.

She rolled off the dead guard, snatching up her pistol as she rose. Immidiatly she staggered back as Kuril opened fire on her. Not even her upgraded shields could last long beneath the torrent of fire. She hissed in pain as the shields died and a bullet flew into her arm, then her shoulder. Thank god that gun was inaccurate as hell.

Kuril's shouted in pain and the fire stopped. She looked up to see him holding his bloodied hand

"Dammit!" shouted Garrus

Shepard immidiatly knew her friend had just saved her life. She wasted no time in running right at Kuril, ignoring her wounds she slammed into the Turian, throwing him up against the wall. He drove an elbow into her back, in response she drove a knee between his legs, she still wasn't sure how much that hurt Turians, but she still knew it hurt. She followed the knee up with a punch to his unarmoured head.

Kuril staggered, swinging a wild elbow that smashed right into her face, going under her visor to connect with her mouth and the bottom of her nose. Shepard immediately tasted blood but ignored it as she drive another knee into the wardens gut before throwing him to the ground.

Kuril groaned loudly and she was quickly ontop of him, throwing another punch into his face.

"You!" another punch "Should!" another punch, this one hit his mandible and tore it backwards, the warden screamed in pain, "Have!" she threw a final punch "Taken the damn money!" Shepard rose from the wounded Turian, picking up her pistol and his Revenant "Lets get out of here!" she called to her companions.

Grunt finished killing the guard he was fighting while Garrus quickly ran up to her.

"What about him?" asked Grunt, looking at Kuril who was still on the ground.

"Either the ship blows up and he dies, or the prisoners kill him. Let's get moving." She hated double crossers, especially arrogant ones. She didn't give Kuril a second glance as they ran out the door.

The hallway beyond had several bodies scattered throughout it, she saw the unmistakable form of Jack running ahead of them. Shepard ran as fast as her body would allow, the door hadn't even closed from Jack's exit by the time they reached it.

Shepard stopped as they entered the room, a dozen bodies were scattered about the room, most of them piled up near the small hallway leading to the airlock door, which was blocked by the unmistakable form of Revan. Still out of his robes, one lightsaber was glowing in his left hand.

Jack had stopped and was staring at Revan, she turned and looked at Shepard as they came in.

"Who the fuck are you?" she demanded, glaring at Shepard.

"Commander Shepard, I came to recruit you for a mission I am on. Look we can talk about this later, right now we should get off this ship." She really had no idea how this was going to go down, but she was thankful that Revan was here. He was probably the only one who could stop Jack if things went bad.

"I don't even know you, why the hell should I trust you?"

"I'll tell you whatever you want to know, but we should really discuss that one a ship that isn't about to explode." She could still hear the automated warning going off through the ship, that accompanied by the occasional shudder or explosion made her point even clearer.

"Who do you work for?" Jack was glaring at her now, it was clear she wasn't going to trust easily.

"I am a council Spectre, Cerberus asked me-"

"Cerberus?" Shouted Jack, anger prominent in her voice, her whole body went blue with biotic power.

"I am not Cerberus!" Shepard said quickly, she really didn't want this to turn into a fight. Another explosion rocked the ship, they were out of time "Look I will explain everything, but we need to get off this ship! I promise that I mean you no harm, shit I hate Cerberus too. Its complicated, but I am not Cerberus."

If this didn't work then either they would have to leave Jack behind or somehow subdue her, they couldn't stay here any longer.

"You try anything and I will kill every last one of you," growled Jack, her eyes narrowing on Shepard, then her companions.

"Fine, lets go!" she didn't wait for Jack as she ran past her towards the airlock. Revan stepped aside as she came, she gave him a nod, stopping across from him to usher everyone past.

"Who the fuck is the dude with the laser sword?" asked Jack, the last one to move past them. She stopped glanced back at Revan, looking him up and down.

"He is a friend, can we please keep moving?"

"Whatever."

Shepard repressed a sigh as she moved towards the airlock, Revan walking beside her, she heard him deactivate his lightsaber before returning it to his belt. They followed jack through the airlock and onto the Normandy.

"Grunt, Garrus, good work, you are dismissed. Joker, get us out of here," she turned to looked at Jack "if you follow me then we can answer whatever questions you have."

They headed across the CIC, getting weary looks from the crewmen, Jack was glaring at everybody. Garrus and Grunt broke off at the armory doors to head for the elevator, Revan continued to follow her. Shepard was silently thankful for that, she was going to ask him to follow her anyway; she would need him if things got bad.

They entered into the briefing room where Miranda was already waiting. Jack immediately started glaring at the brunette. Shepard just repressed another sigh as she moved to the head of the table, taking off her helmet and setting it on the table. Revan stood to her left, clearly putting himself between her and Jack. Which oddly made her want to smile…Shepard pushed that aside quickly.

"Okay Jack, as promised I will tell you everything." So Shepard quickly began to explain about the Collectors, the abductions, how Cerberus was the only one willing to stop them, Miranda made a few interjections as she went. "But I want you to stress that this is my mission, I am in command. I do not answer to Cerberus. They gave me the resources to do this, that is it."

"Maybe you should tell cheerleader that," scoffed Jack "alright look, you got me off that ship. Here's the deal. I want access to all of Cerberus's files, especially their ones on me, I get that and I will help you out with your little mission, for now."

"Deal." Shepard answered immediately, she had no problems giving Jack the information she wanted. The Illusive Man could shut up if he had a problem.

"You try to fuck with me and I will make your pretty face nothing but a smear on the wall."

"Don't worry Jack. You will have full access. You decide to help me, fantastic, you want out then say the word and we will drop you off anywhere." Shepard stared at Jack the entire time she answered, she was completely serious, she wanted Jack's help willingly. The decision would be hers.

"Fine, get me the files. I'll be down in the hold somewhere. Keep your people away from me." With that Jack left the room, Miranda just shook her head before leaving a moment later.

"Well that went better than expected," Shepard said with a faint chuckle.

"Jack is...very interesting. I have only met one other person who was filled with so much hatred and rage," said Revan, still looking at the door.

"Shit I keep forgetting you can sense people inner emotions." Although Jack seemed to wear her emotions on her sleeve…if she had sleeves, she would really need to talk about getting her some clothes.

She looked over to Revan, who was still looking at the door. She really couldn't imagine how it felt to be able to sense someone's feelings; she could only imagine how much hated Jack contained inside, if it was already so obvious on the outside.

"Who's the other person?" She asked, she had never met anyone as angry as Jack.

Revan was silent for several seconds "My apprentice, Malak."

"Apprentice? You had students?" She didn't really see him as the teacher type. The again he was full of surprises.

"Just the one. I was a more powerful Jedi than him. He followed my examples; I taught him new ways of the force."

Revan's voice was devoid of any emotion as he spoke but Shepard hardly noticed, she was just amazed that he was actually sharing a piece of himself that wasn't a war story. That was all he seemed to talk about. But now he was talking about a student, they had probably been friends as well.

"What happened to him?" She asked carefully.

"He is dead," Revan replied, he then walked out of the room, leaving Shepard alone.

Had she struck a nerve? She probably had, they must have been friends. But Revan had said that Malak had been as full of hated and rage as Jack. Why would he be so angry? Revan didn't seem like that kind of person, he always seemed very in control of his emotions. Maybe she could ask him about it later.

She was surprised he had told her any of that, but it made her smile slightly. She was actually excited by the prospect of getting to know him, he was definitely and interesting person. However she was not going to hold it against him if he didn't want to tell her everything, which was unfair of her. He had proved himself willing to help and- shit she didn't apologize!

Shepard quickly grabbed her helmet and followed Revan. She was so preoccupied that she forgot all about her wounds and blood smeared face. She caught up to him just as he was entering the elevator and she almost had to dive inside to make it before the doors closed.

"Revan!" She said quickly "I need to tell you something."

"Yes?"

Shepard sucked in a breath, she really hoped he would accept it "I wanted to apologize for how I treated you. When you first offered to help, I turned you away. Then after I demanded that you earn my trust. I am sorry; I had no right to treat you with such suspicion. It was unfair of me and I hope you can forgive me. I recognize that you have been trying to help; I know that you are telling those stories so the crew can get to know you. It means a lot."

"Thank you Commander."

"And I am sorry it took me this long to apologize. I was thinking about it today and I realized that its unfair of me to hold it against you for not telling any real personal information about yourself. I get it, some things you don't want to talk about." She took in a breath, damn this was really going on longer than she had thought it would.

She had just been planning to say sorry, but here she was explaining everything to him. She just wanted him to know, to understand where she was coming from.

"And this whole trust thing is a two way street," she continued "I realized that I have to earn your trust too. So from now on I am going to work on that. Anything you want to know, you just have to ask- Oh and this isn't a bargain, you don't have to give me information about yourself in exchange for mine. You don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I would like it if you did but I will understand if you don't. You have proven invaluable Revan. You have my trust."

The elevator doors opened for the cargo bay but neither of them moved, it took almost a full minute for Revan to respond.

"Thank you Commander and apology accepted."

Shepard couldn't help but smile, his voice still sounded very still but she could also detect a certain…sincerity to it. She was shocked when he put his hand forward and rested it on her shoulder.

She was about to ask him what he was doing when she felt a pain where the bullet wounds were, also on her cut lip and nose. The process only took a few seconds before Revan pulled back his hands, she could instantly feel that all her wounds had been healed.

"My apologies for not healing them earlier."

"Don't worry about it!" She replied quickly, with a chuckle "I forgot about them too. I should probably go get cleaned up, see you at supper?"

"Of course." Revan nodded and stepped out of the elevator, oddly he kept watching her even as she pushed the button for her cabin and the doors closed.

Shepard still couldn't help but smile though, she felt way better now. It was nice to clear the air. She meant everything she had told him, while she wouldn't push him she did hope he opened up a little bit more. It would be good to get to know him.

* * *

Revan stared at the closed elevator doors. He was completely stunned by her…sincerity. She hadn't uttered a word of a lie, everything had been the truth, she meant everything. Why? He could not figure out why she was being so kind to him. Yes he had given them several technological advantages but still, but so what! That shouldn't have meant this much.

She also knew what he was doing with his stories! She knew that he was purposely avoiding any personal topics. She knew and she did not care. She said that he had her trust and now it was her turn to earn his.

Why the hell had he even told her about Malak? He could have lied, made up someone, just said a soldier in the war. Why had he even given her that much-dammit why did she have to be so fucking nice!

Revan spun and stormed back into his room, trying not to smash the hell out of everything in the whole cargo bay. Why was she being this way? Why was she being so fucking accepting of him? Why was she so much like HER! She had sounded so much like HER that he had actually seen her face for a moment.

He dropped down into his chair, the console immediately flared to life at his presence. He looked up and it showed the last thing he had been doing, the force was certainly cruel today. He had been transferring data stored on his helmet to the terminal so he could have more space. Staring at him now was a picture he had taken of Meetra Surik, her bright blue eyes staring directly into his grey ones; his mask offered no protection from her gaze.

His emotions completely override all thought and he slammed his fist through the display, but there was nothing physical to connect with. Growling in rage he shot from his seat and threw the console on the ground, it shattered into several pieces.

Revan stumbled, his mind going wild, rational thought was abandoned, forgetting that all the data was automatically backed up on the other terminals. Everything he had repressed, every single emotion was flooding to the surface and he could not stop it.

"_Shab, shab, shab!" _He dropped to the ground, hands shaking as he grabbed the pieces. What had he done? He destroyed it, he couldn't see her face- no!Her face was still in his mind! Her eyes were still staring at him!

Revan wrenched his helmet off, he couldn't breathe, he couldn- his stomach lurched but nothing came out. He fell against his cot, grabbing his head he tried to shut her out. His eyes looked up and he saw the green helmet staring at him now.

He quickly shot across the floor and snatched the helmet from the table; falling against the work bench he held the helmet tightly in his hands. He felt the familiar calming presence begin to flow through him now.

What would they think of him if they could see him now? Deep down he knew exactly what they would both say, and that only made it worse. His shoulders trembled slightly, and he felt tears begin to fall down his cheeks.

He was surrounded with memories of his failings; he was under the command of a woman who constantly reminded him of the one he had killed.

Revan, savior of the republic, lord of the sith, sat in the cargo bay and silently cried for all he had lost. Hoping with all his might that the force with grant him the strength to see this through.

* * *

**I AM SO SORRY! I really did not mean for this chapter to take so long! I wasnt happy with the original so I scrapped it and then hit writers block. Powered through it though and I am pretty happy with how this chapter came out, not super happy. The end part with Revan's breakdown is still iffy in my mind. I wanted to show just how fragile of a mental state he is in when it comes to Meetra and his mother. I think I like what happened just not sure how it played out. Hope you all like it anyway! let me know what you all think!**

**To reviews!**

**Konerok Hadorak: WOW thank you for your kind words and all of your input! It is highly appreciated! As for your concern about Shepard seeming immature that makes sense! She may come off as that, however I hope that you can see a contrast between Shepard in the field and Shepard just chatting with people. I want their to be a clear distinction between her and Revan, especially in the types of leaders they are. The best way I can think of to sum it up (very poetically I might add, ha ha) Revan is someone you would follow into hell, without question. Shepard is someone you would go to hell for. Hope that makes sense...It sounds really good in my head.**

**HK will be arriving! He will look different but still the same HK personality that we all know and love. Revan needs his trusty droid :)**

**Yes Revan disappeared before his mind wipe, although I already altered the SW universe to fit my own purposes. I know every cannon detail about his past and I will be getting to some of that later on, as you say it is very important to his character. **

**Not Sure how I would work the Dread Masters in, but I will keep that force technique in mind! Thank you so much for your review! I appreciate all your input!**

**6tailedninja: No I still haven't seen the new one, just re-watched the old one, ha ha. Shepard and Revan will definitly be getting into some debates later on! Also there will be some fun Jack interaction with Revan. Thank you for your kind words! (And not minding the lack of action)**

**Oplindenfeb: I am so sorry! This is what I like better about the ME universe to SW, everything is spelled how it sounds in ME! Thank you for your continued love! :)**

**RereMcFluffles&CreatorZorah: Thank you for pointing that out! Punctuation is not my strong point! I am working on it though, I looked up some stuff after I saw your posts. Thank you again! I will try to get better!**

**Universal-Public-Cockblocker: Thanks for your kind words! As I said HK will be arriving, so just old on!**

**The Lone Courier of XCOM: Thank you! I am very glad that it is my greatest joy to make all the fan boys and girls happy!...sorry if that sounds creepy**

**A few quick notes about this chapter and the story.**

**1. I always saw a Fem Shep to be kind of a motherly figure towards Grunt, the idea to me is just hilarious and a bit cute. So that's what is going on there.**

**2. Another reason for the delay was I actually wrote a christmas chapter! Unfortunately I cant post it because it takes place later in the story. But you will see it eventually!**

**3. Revan will be meeting TIM soon, probably within the next two chapters.**

**4. Bit of a teaser, next chapter will probably contain a flash back about Meetra. I am really going to start delving into Revan and Shepards seriously damaged psyches. **

**5. I promise to you all that I will NEVER abandon this story! I am way too excited to get into the ME3 stuff to ever abandon this! I love it too much. This delay should be the longest ever when it comes to new posts. If I do abandon it you all have permission to form an angry mob and hunt me down! **

**Thats it from me!**

**Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, favoriting, liking, and just being awesome people! Keep it up! **

**Much love and happy new year!**

**You stay classy! **


	11. Chapter 11

**Planet Lucazec, Surface.**

The officer looked nervous as he waited, to his credit he did not flinch at heavy explosions of artillery in the distance, nor the sound of heavy fighting all around them. He had just delivered his report and now he was waiting for Revan's response, as much as these soldiers praised him as a hero they were still nervous at delivering bad news. Deep down he knew they were afraid of him, they all knew what he could do, although he had never actually done anything terrible to anyone under his command, force knew he wanted to sometimes.

Revan turned from the officer and looked back to the large planetary display. That damn coward had potentially cost them this battle. Their left flank was now completely exposed and the Mandalorians were rushing towards his command post right now. If they took this position then all communications would break down and command would crumble.

The most logical course of action would be to deploy his reserve troops to counter the Mandalorians and shore up the line. However his foes had also made a mistake. They were overzealous in their charge, eager to kill him and destroy the Republic command. They had diverted the majority of their reserve units to push through the hole in his lines.

If what he was seeing was correct… "Malak give me a report," He demanded, speaking into his com.

"That bastard Voran pulled back and the Mandalorians are heading right for you," said the gruff voice of his apprentice. He could hear blaster fire in the background, the shouts of soldiers and the screams of the dying.

"I was just informed, what is your situation?" Revan tried to hide the irritation in his voice as he spoke, Malak should have known that information had already been passed along.

"We are still moving forward, they moved off their reserve units to push through the gap. Only a token force is trying to roll up our lines though, the majority are pushing towards you, I can- Get the fuck back into formation!" Malak screamed to his soldiers "I can send a company your way to delay them at least."

"Negative, I am deploying twelfth company to your position. They have weakened their position, push forward and move into the city. Coordinate your attack with Danton's men." If everything went well then they would smash through the weakened Mandalorian lines and get to the city, cutting off the retreat of the forces heading towards him.

"Copy, think you can handle all those Mandalorians yourself?" Asked Malak with a chuckle.

Revan grinned in response "I'll show them how a real Mandalorian fights." Malak was one of the few people who knew his true heritage. Most people just assumed he wore the armor of a Mandalorian because of its superb quality, which was partly true he supposed. If he hadn't had his own suit then he probably would have procured one by now.

"See you in the city, Malak out."

The com went dead and Revan turned back to the officer, he had almost forgotten the man was there.

"Strip Voran of command and throw him into twelfth company then order them to Malak's position," Revan said, moving past the officer and heading out of the tent.

The officer saluted and ran off. Hopefully Voran would go down fighting one way or another. He quickly pushed thoughts of the coward from his mind as he headed towards edge of his command post, summoning his officers with quick signal on his com.

His position was on a cliff side that over looked the battlefield. From the ground there was only one approach and his forces were massing there, taking up firing positions behind the well-constructed barricades. Revan always insisted on a well-fortified CP in the field, a decision that had proved invaluable on multiple occasions.

There were roughly fifty soldiers present to defend the location, including the officers. He would keep com staff and other specialist out of combat unless absolutely necessary it was always a pain in the ass when one of them got taken out.

As he neared the front four figures detached themselves from organizing the defenders to present themselves before him. Two Jedi, both male and wearing the robes of the order, but a suit of republic trooper armor was visible underneath. The other two officers we non Jedi, one male and one female, clad in heavy suits of armor. All of them saluted at his approach.

Revan nodded to them and they all relaxed "We are going to hold off the Mandalorian advance here. I have ordered our remaining forces to push forward and secure the city. We must either route the enemy or hold on long enough for aid to come."

The officers all saluted again in their answer, not a second of hesitation from any of them. Revan smiled to himself, they were a very loyal bunch, he returned the salute before dismissing them.

He walked through the assembled defenders, nimbly leaping on top of front most barricades to look out across the field. He could already sense the enemy closing in, they were filled with hated and anger. Yes they were very eager to kill him. Revan grinned; they would be reckless in their attack.

He advanced HUD was able to zoom in and make out a dozen tanks storming ahead of the main infantry advance. They would be fools if they tried to charge up the hill, the size of the road up the hill meant only one of the large vehicles could pass at a time. No, they would hold back and be used more as an artillery unit; they would hammer this position before the infantry attacked.

"Allik, Polin, on me," he spoke through his com, immediately sensing the two Jedi moving to his side, "We need to take out those tanks. Allik protect us from incoming fire, Polin, you know what to do."

Neither of the Jedi were as powerful as him, but they were still a force to be reckoned with. The tanks were not in range, but they were close enough for him. Revan reached out with his left and, almost instantly one of the tanks lifted into the air, its treads still moving. He closed his fist and watched as the machine crumpled into a twisted ball of metal.

Keeping the large ball in the air Revan jerked his hand to the side, watching as the remains of the tank slammed into its neighbor, crushing through its body and turning it to scrap. The tanks had gotten closer now and Polin had begun to work his own powers, ripping the turret from one tank, rendering it useless.

Revan threw the two tanks he had destroyed; they crashed into the advancing infantry, easily killing a dozens. Now that the machines were closer he could use his powers to an even greater effect. Reached out to the rear tank, he rotated its turret towards the lead machine, then he activated the firing mechanism. The super-heated plasma slammed into the unprotected rear of the lead vehicle, tearing through the body and into the main compartment, killing the crew.

He smiled as the formation was thrown into chaos, he fired at another tank, hitting it in the side, it took two hits to bring it down. By now the other vehicles had opened fire on the rogue tank, destroying it in barrage of plasma. Polin had also racked up two more kills in this time.

The remaining vehicles continued towards the CP, now within range they opened fire, three of the four shots smashed harmlessly into the mountain side, while the final one headed straight for the line. Before it could impact the bolt veered to the side, hitting only dirt and rock.

Revan ripped one of the tanks in half, using the remains to pummel a second into a heap of scrap. Polin pulled off the remaining two turrets in quick succession. Revan lowered his hands and looked over to the two Jedi.

"Good work, now get ready for the real fight."

The two Jedi nodded and moved back to rejoin the front line, Revan turned to face his assembled soldiers "Soldiers of the Republic! Let's show these fools how real warriors fight!" Revan ignited his lightsaber as he spoke, holding it high above his head.

There was a resounding cry from his soldiers that made him smile. These were soldiers he had personally picked for his command retinue; many often accompanied him into battle. These were real warriors. These men and women were more Madalorian that most of the soldiers in the army they were fighting.

Revan turned to face the charging enemy, the infantry were close enough to open fire now, but they were at maximum range, the few shots that would have hit he easily deflected with his lightsaber. As they got closer he finally jumped off the barricade and took his position and moved to the front line. His soldiers opened fire as the enemy came closer, the concentrated wall of blaster bolts brought down the leading Mandalorian soldiers in quick order.

It only took a few moments before the enemy pulled their act together and returned fire in a disciplined and effective manner. The republic soldiers took cover behind the barricades, while Revan and the other Jedi pulled back behind the front lines. Standing at the front would be a pointless endeavor, there would be too much blaster fire for them to turn aside, besides the barricades would provide good protection for the soldiers, they didn't need the Jedi for that.

It was still too early for them to charge forward. The enemy numbered around two hundred; they needed to thin their numbers before engaging in melee. Luckily this location meant they had to charge the Republic positions head on, there was no other way around. They would have to move into what was essentially a funnel, right into a perfect kill zone.

One of the Republic soldiers fell, howling in pain, a bolt had struck him in the center of his chest. Revan could still feel that the man was alive, but the wound was bad. He quickly reached out with the force and began healing the wounded trooper.

"Thank you sir," said the soldier, grunting as he rose, without hesitation he retook his former position and continued firing down at the Mandalorians.

Revan felt a surge of pride at seeing the soldier's dedication. Yes he was surrounded by true Mandalorians. Almost as if the enemy were reading his thoughts a shout went up from the Mandalorian lines.

"Die _Aruetii!_" Shouted one of the Mandalorian sergeants, he was organizing his men to steadily push forward.

Rage began to course through Revan at the shout. That scum dared to call his soldiers non-Mandalorians? These bastards had no claim to the honor of being Mandalorian! They were honourless butchers! The men and women with him were true examples of Mandalorians!

Revan ignited both his lightsabers, their ranks had been thinned enough. He pushed to the front line and used the force to propel him into the enemy ranks; he came to a stop right in front of the _Aruetii_ sergeant. With one swift motion he had removed the scums head and stabbed another soldier through the heart.

He spun to the side, avoiding a hail of blaster fire, coming to a halt in the midst of another group of enemies. He slashed one across the chest while cutting a seconds arm off before decapitating him. One of the enemy tried to pull his sword free but Revan ran him through before he got the chance. Without even looking he deflected the sword descending on the back of his head. Pulling his lightsaber from the enemies' chest he spun at a crouch, slicing his attacker across the gut.

He didn't watch the foe fall before he moved to the next one. They blocked the lightsaber going for their neck but they didn't even see the second one that was rammed up into their chest. Revan spun to avoid the bolt going for his head, he reached out with the force and snapped the shooters neck as he came back to a rise.

Polin and Alik had instantly followed him into the fray, cutting through the enemy with him. The soldiers at the barricades had fanned out along the cliffs edges and were firing down on the enemy, while a squad of troops trained specially by Revan had followed him into the fray; they gripped swords in one hand and extremely powerful blasters in the other.

Revan grinned at seeing them charge into the midst of the enemy, they were just as fierce as any Jedi. He ran further into the enemy, the Jedi and his elite squad following him in. The enemy were still numerous and poured a torrent of fire onto him at every opportunity. Where his agility and powers fell short the few shots that got through were easily turned aside by his armor.

He had just decapitated another soldier when he suddenly opened his com in response to the feeling he got through the force "What are you doing?" He demanded gruffly as he drove his knee into an enemy's gut before stabbing them through the back.

The response he got was twofold. First came a strong feeling of irritation, but deep down was buried concern. Next was a streak of fire from the sky that headed straight for the battle. The Mandalorians looked up; obviously thinking it was a Basalisk. There hopes would soon be crushed.

Revan continued tracking the object in his peripherals as he cut down three more of the enemy. The object slammed into the middle of the enemy ranks, it was no Basalisk, what it looked like was a large teardrop shaped cargo container with thrusters. Which is essentially what it was.

The doors of the object blew off and a dozen figures came storming out, all of them were outfitted like Revan's elite squad, save for the figure in the lead. The double silver blade was a blur as it cut down the enemy as if they were nothing.

Revan quickly jumped back into the fray, cutting the legs out from a hulking enemy soldier before stabbing him through the heart. Just what was she doing down here? She was supposed to be commanding the space battle!

He wanted to be mad at her; this was a serious breach of protocol! She was essentially abandoning her post! But try as he might he could not muster any anger towards her for more than a few seconds.

Revan spun, his foot connecting with a foes face, knocking the man back, he slashed across a woman's chest before her sword could stab him. He threw his lightsaber through the chest of the man he had kicked, turning to deflect a high chop of a sword; he thrust out his free hand, pulling the lightsaber back into his hand then he slashed across the attackers exposed midsection, severing them in half.

His immediate area clear he glanced over to Meetra. She had thrust her lightsaber through the chest of an enemy; she then spun in a full circle, the double blade cutting down two more of the foe who tried to advance on her. A red armored sergeant charged her with a sword, while another came up behind her. She leapt into the air, both feet kicking the sergeant in the chest, throwing him back and propelling her backwards where impossibly she landed on the shoulders of her rear attacker. She wrapped her legs tightly around the enemies neck and with a single fluid motion she twisted sharply to the side, the soldier went limp and as they fell she easily threw the body over her, using the momentum to land at a crouch, where she impaled the sergeant with her silver blade.

As always Revan was awestruck as he watched her fight. It sent his heart racing and completely entranced him every time. She was without a doubt the most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his life. As she decapitated an enemy with a flourish their eyes locked and he felt his heart beat even harder.

By now the enemy was in full retreat, they had lost almost two thirds of their forces in the attack, and by now Malak should have secured the city. This battle was over. He gave a quick order for his forces to regroup at the CP and see to the wounded. As the soldier began moving back he nodded to those that passed, but his eyes never left Meetra. She stood staring at him, nearly twenty feet away.

He could sense her anger and frustration towards him, it was as easy as feeling his own emotions. Their bond was so strong that he could sense her from across the galaxy; this meant that feelings and emotions flowed easily between them. He also knew exactly why she was upset, partly because of their bond, but also just because he knew her.

Despite her anger he still found himself distracted by just staring at her. She was wearing a deep grey and red suit of Mandalorian armor, it matched his helmet perfectly, because they belonged to the same person. One of the few Mandalorians he had seen who still had honor.

She had died trying to stop that scum Cassus Fett from murdering the people of Cathar. Revan had found her mask on the shore where she had died alongside the innocent populace. It was that day that he vowed to destroy the so called Mandalorians, he vowed to see them pay for their crimes. He wore this helmet in honor of her, for the sacrifice she had made. They had found the armor the next day and Meetra had taken worn it ever since, she had said it was to honor the woman but he knew there was something more to it.

She was walking towards him now, her chestnut hair was pulled up into a tail, she had never liked the Jedi tradition of braids. Her eyes were a stunning mixture of brown and green, the color would often shift to favor one or the other, right now they had shifted to a more brown tone, almost taking on a beautiful red hue.

She stopped right infront of him, not saying a word and he could tell that she was purposely masking her emotions from him. She reached up and pulled his helmet free, staring directly into his eyes.

Revan found himself frozen in place, it amazed him how easily she could do this to him. How easily she could sent his hear racing, make his mind blank and think of nothing but her. A smile tugged at her lips and he finally let out the breath he had been holding, he was then slapped across the face.

"Are you stupid?" She demanded, glaring at him, she stopped masking her emotions and the anger and annoyance flooded back through their bond. However he could feel that her surface feelings were born of concern for him.

"What?" He asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible, he couldn't resist teasing her now.

"Next time call for reinforcements, you damn fool!" She growled at him, clearly not amused with him.

"We could have handled it. Just what the hell were you thinking, abandoning your post?" He felt his own flicker of annoyance at remembering her actions, although he was certain it was partially due to her feelings influencing him. Otherwise he wouldn't have been upset for more than a few seconds.

"We already won the battle! The Mandalorians pulled out of the system. Then we got a transmission that your command post was under attack and you diverted the reserve units to the front!" Her voice was quiet but was still bristling with anger.

"We were handling it just fine. We had an excellent position and-"

"You should have called for reinforcements!" She shouted, her voice finally breaking from an angry growl, "You were heavily outnumbered, what if you had…" her voice fell away and so did her anger, the concern suddenly rushed to the surface and overpowered everything else "I am not going through that again, I will not." Her voice took back its hard tone as she fixed her eyes on him again.

So that's what it was all about. It had only been a week since he had been captured and nearly executed, ever since then she had been on edge. The fact was if it hadn't been for her he would be dead. But it was also that reason they had to come back and retake this planet for a second time.

Revan quickly pushed those thoughts aside, once more his inability to be upset with her winning out.

"I am sorry," he whispered, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers. He was usually against showing this level of affection in public. But he could feel how upset she was. He also supposed that she was right. The enemy had been numerous, there was a chance they would have been overwhelmed.

She leaned into him, foreheads still touching "I…I know I shouldn't doubt you like that, it's just-"

"It's okay, don't worry about it," he pulled back, a faint grin on his face "I guess it's about time someone tried to keep my stupidity in check." He poured his feelings through their bond, letting her share in the happiness that he felt because of her.

She smiled back at him, her mood beginning to lift "I was the only one with the patience." She mumbled, still trying to sound angry but failing miserably.

"Wouldn't want anyone else."

Her smiled broadened and she surprised him by leaning forward and planting her lips on his. It only last a few seconds but he savored every bit of it. The act showed just how concerned she had truly been, also how much she cared. They never did anything like that in public.

Revan just let his feelings pour over their bond and almost immediately all her previous feelings were gone, replaced by ones matching his. As they walked back up to the command post he was pleased to see her trademark smile was back. He could feel all the happiness and joy she was now feeling, it only served to broaden his smile as they walked, although he quickly put his helmet back on before any of the troops could see.

* * *

By the time they arrived in the city the crowds had already gathered to greet them. Revan marched with Meetra and his remaining forces; they wound through the crowded streets towards the main government building.

"Okay everyone get some rest, we move out tomorrow at oh-eight-hundred." Revan spoke into his com as he and Meetra entered the large building, his troops quickly saluted before moving off towards the military complex just on the edge of town.

There were still numerous blast marks on both the outside and inside of the building, Republic soldiers were still clearing away the bodies as he walked through the halls, all of them giving a sharp salute as they passed.

When they entered into the interior reception area, Malak was waiting. His arms were crossed as he spoke with two officers, his red armor was scorched by blaster fire and he had a small cut above his brow. His bald head turned to look at Revan and Meetra as they entered the room. He said something to the officers before they saluted and left for their duties.

"I see you are still alive," Malak said with a nod to Revan "Although I guess you did have some help." His face contorted into a sneer as his gaze shifted to Meetra, who did not react in the slightest, she was still perfectly calm.

"Good work today Malak," she was still smiling as she spoke to the taller man.

"I trust you didn't abandon your post in the middle of battle again?"

Revan just rolled his eyes, holding in his sigh. To say Malak was not a fan of Meetra would have been an understatement. The man detested her; he had from almost day one. Revan knew that it was all born of jealousy. The fact of the matter was that Meetra was more powerful, skilled, and a better commander. It also did not help that he had given her command of nearly half of all the Republic and Jedi forces, whereas Malak only commanded a small portion by comparison.

"The Battle was well won and over when I came to Revan's aid," Meetra's pleasant demeanor hadn't faltered at all, she was still smiling at Malak, "By the way, excellent work on capturing the city, I understand you did it in very short order."

Malak's sneer only deepened, his inability to annoy the woman frustrated him further, "Bah, they had only a token force in the city. The fools had thrown most of their troops at us outside. Once we smashed through their lines it was simple," he finally looked over to Revan, "The deposed government is on the way here, those that still live at least. I will let you deal with them."

"Good work Malak. Go rest up and see to your troops, make sure they are ready for departure tomorrow."

The tall man nodded to Revan, he threw a final sneer at Meetra before stalking away. Revan didn't hold in his sigh this time, that man really got on his nerves sometimes. There wasn't any logical reason for him to hate Meetra, but then Malak was not a creature driven by logic, he was ruled by his emotions. Although his emotions had become increasingly dark the longer this war went on. More and more his friend was filling with hate and anger.

This war was changing everyone; Revan was not blind to that. Even he was changing. He had never fully agreed with the Jedi teachings, there were many rules that were narrow minded and born of fear. The Jedi had refused to fight in this war; they had refused to stop the slaughter of millions. The day they had denied that had been the day when what faith he had in the order died.

How could they call themselves guardians of the people when they stood by and let the people be butchered? They were hypocrites, stuck in their old ways that had no place in this galaxy anymore. They truly believed that acting against the Mandalorians would have done nothing. They were fools.

Those that had followed him to war, they were Jedi no longer. One could not be a considered a Jedi and still fight this war the way it needed to be fought. This war was changing all of them, some more deeply than others. None would walk away from this without scars.

Revan looked over to Meetra; she was talking to a group of soldiers. He felt himself frown. Even she was being affected. She hid it very well, but their bond made it almost impossible for her to keep him in the dark. She was everything that the Jedi should be; she was the best of them all. But this war was getting to her; he could feel her pain every time she ordered soldiers to their deaths. It broke his heart to see it. In his mind it was one of the Mandalorians greatest sins in this war.

She had become the reason he was fighting so hard to put an end to this war. She represented everything that was being lost, everything that this war was costing them. It was because of her that he would do whatever it took to end this war, no matter the cost he would end the Mandalorian threat, then they could finally be done with all of this. She could be herself again; no longer would he have to watch her slowly be torn apart by all this death and destruction. He would stop at nothing to make it come to pass.

* * *

The room was quiet, the only noises came from Revan working at the console, Meetra was sitting on the edge of the bed, meticulously cleaning her armor and humming quietly. He had been watching her almost the entire time as he worked. She had a smile on her face as she cleaned the armors surface.

She was genuinely happy right now, at peace. They rarely got to spend private time together, even rarer did they share quarters. He had taken the former Mandalorian commanders' quarters, which had belonged to the previous governor before being killed in the cities capture. This meant that they were away from the majority of Republic forces, and since she had technically been given one of the adjacent rooms no one would even know.

Revan couldn't help but smile as he watched her, both the act of watching her and feeling everything that she was feeling made it impossible for him to not be happy as well. This is what he could never understand about the Jedi. They would surely damn the both of them for their relationship, force them to give it up or cast them out of the order, not that he cared about being part of the order anymore.

This just reinforced his opinion on how narrow-minded those fools were. They claimed Jedi needed to avoid all emotional relationships because it would lead to the darkside. That was bullshit. It was because of Meetra, because of their relationship that he felt strong enough to keep going. She filled him with hope; she kept him going when he felt he couldn't go any longer. She reminded him of who he was and what he was fighting for. How could anyone view such as thing as evil and something to be avoided? He loved her, that did not make him evil, that did not corrupt him. If anything she was what kept him from faltering, from becoming something he was not. If it weren't for her then he would probably be much more like Malak now.

"You are brooding again," said Meetra suddenly, there was a faint clang of metal as she gently stacked the now clean gauntlets with the other armor, locking eyes with him as she did.

"It's nothing," he replied, smiling at her, it was a smile she could actually see as she was the only person he didn't wear his helmet around. She gave him a dubious look but he quickly let her feel that he truly was okay. She smiled back at him and began cleaning her breastplate; her gentle humming again filled his ears.

He completely forgot the little work he had left as he watched her. Her sun streaked chestnut hair was unbound; it tumbled down past her shoulders to the middle of her back. She was wearing the grey suit under her armor which hugged her body fairly tightly. She was still dirty from battle, dirt and grime were visible on her clothes and she had a dark smudge on her cheek. This did nothing to diminish her beauty though, she completely entranced him. She was without a doubt in his mind the most beautiful woman in the galaxy.

"I haven't even showered yet," Meetra said, not looking up at him but her cheeks flushed slightly.

Revan just grinned, she got embarrassed by his thoughts fairly easily. She was under the foolish assumption that she was not beautiful, she didn't think herself ugly, she just thought he constantly hyperbolized about how gorgeous she actually was. As far as he was concerned he had yet to actually find the right words to fully capture how beautiful she was to him.

"You are so full of it," muttered Meetra, cleaning her armor even more intently as her cheeks reddened further.

Revan grinned as he watched her reaction. He hadn't realized he had let his guard down enough for her to read his thoughts so easily, although that did happen quite often when he was alone with her. He could feel how happy she was though; as much as she was embarrassed he knew that it filled her with joy to know how he really felt about her.

She finished cleaning the breastplate and very carefully set it on the floor along with the others. He could see the care she took in the action, every time she handled the armor it was with extreme care. Her diligence in maintaining it was the same as any true Mandalorian.

"Why do you wear that armor?" He asked suddenly "I mean really. I know you said it's the same reason I wear the helmet, but I know you didn't tell me everything." They had no secrets from each other, while this wasn't exactly a secret per say he was still curious as to what she wasn't telling him.

She didn't answer right away; he felt her barriers go up slightly so he couldn't easily read her thoughts. She looked down at the armor, staring at it intently for a moment.

"I wear it for you," she said quietly, still looking at the armor

Revan just stared dumbfounded, why would she wear it for him? Sure he wanted her to have good protection, and _beskar _was the best anyone could get. But he had never insisted on her wearing it, she had done it of her own accord. He was about to ask her what she meant but she easily read his thoughts and continued.

"I can see how much this tears you up inside, seeing what your people have become. I know how it makes you feel seeing everything they have done," she looked up at him now, "Revan I know how much it hurts you. I know you want nothing more for this war to end, how much you want for your people to turn back into who they should be. You wear that helmet because you honor that woman's sacrifice, because she represents what is good about your people. I wear the armor for that reason; I am fighting for you, for your people and who they once were. I swore to myself that I would not rest until Mandalore and Cassus are defeated and your people regain their honor."

Revan knew without a doubt that she truly meant every word she said, he could feel all the love she had for him pouring through their bond. He had not response for her at first. He knew that she loved him, he just didn't realize how much she cared, that she was doing all of this for him. She had not not been born Mandalorian. Yet when she found out about his heritage, and as they grew closer she had begun to take great care in learning the traditions and ways of his people. Now she was fighting to restore what his vision of his people was. He didn't bother questioning what he had done to ever deserve her, he was just immensely thankful that he had her.

He quickly got up and crossed the room, she read his intentions easily and was already standing when he reached her. He kissed her passionately, holding onto her tightly, he had no words to properly express himself, he hoped he could at least show her. He knew that she could also feel everything, he felt her react to both his touch and his emotions as she leaned further into him, deepening their kiss. His entire body felt alive, like a current flowing through every inch of his body, making him tingle all over. He was truly happy.

"I love you," he whispered, breaking their kiss and staring into her eyes.

"_Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum_," she replied, a smile on her face. Revan felt himself smile even broader hearing the words, he had never actually taught her how to say 'I love you' in Mandalorian, she must have taught herself.

As he looked into her eyes he reswore that he would end this war. No matter the cost he was going to stop the Mandalorian's, he would do whatever it took. He was going to end this for her, so she didn't have to carry these burdens anymore. He would fight with every ounce of his strength, nothing would stop him. He would end this so they could finally live a life of peace. Together.

* * *

**The Normandy, crew deck.**

"Shepard I was there. It took you six shots to hit him," said Garrus, giving a faint chuckle.

"That's because some jackass couldn't keep his sector clear and I kept taking shots from the left while I was trying to aim!" Shepard shot back, giving her friend a playful glare.

They were sitting around the table eating breakfast with most of the crew; even Jack had shown up and stayed at Shepards insistence. The young woman looked very uncomfortable and kept shooting glares to the Cerberus crew, especially Miranda, who was doing a fairly good job of ignoring it.

"Your Alliance test scores in marksmanship would support Garrus's claim," said Miranda, giving her a faint smile.

"Those are old test scores!" Shepard tried to defend her honor, she admitted that she did used to be a shit shot, but she had gotten better.

"Explains why you love the shotgun so much," Garrus teased

"I will kick your ass bird boy!" Shouted Shepard, shaking her fork in a threatening manner, "Wrex told me that fried Turian is a good meal, so don't you test me!"

This actually earned a laugh from Jack; the woman seemed to enjoy a good threat or insult. Shepard had spoken to her after she had settled in on the ship, she definitely wasn't easy to trust and she was still wary of Cerberus, but she did seem to respect the fact that Shepard was also a powerful biotic. Although she was certain Jack could still completely destroy her if she really tried.

"I wouldn't mind seeing that," said Jack with a wicked grin.

"She would miss me way too much," replied Garrus, elbowing her gently in the ribs, "besides she needs my aim." He Turian quickly leapt of his seat as the fork jammed down where his hand had been. He laughed as he moved to clean his dishes.

"Dick!" Shepard shouted, earning several laughs from around the room. She was actually quite pleased with how things were turning out. The crew was coming along nicely and once Jack had more time to adjust then everyone would be getting along again. Shepard let herself smile slightly; things finally seemed to be getting better.

She quickly began finishing up the last of her breakfast; it wasn't until her last bite that she noticed several of the crew were staring in the same direction. She looked over her shoulder to see Revan coming from the showers. What she was sure everyone was staring at is that he was not wearing his armor, or his helmet. He only wore his black robes, the hood pulled up to obscure most of his face, but she could still make up his strong jaw line.

Shepard had to take a moment to actually look at the unarmoured form of Revan. The robes were bulky but they also seemed to hug his body very closely in the torso, she knew that all of the women in the crew would be staring very intently right now.

Not wanting to be one of them, Shepard waved "Morning," she said cheerfully, turning in her chair so she wasn't staring but could still see him.

"So laser boy wears a dress too?" Asked Jack with a laugh.

Revan stopped, only giving Jack a glance before he looked back to Shepard, "Commander I have ordered many components that I can use for various upgrades, they should be waiting for pickup on Omega. If we could stop and retrieve them I can get back to work."

"Yeah I will get Joker to plot a course; we still haven't got the next round of dossiers so we have time." Shepard looked at the hooded man curiously; his tone was very…neutral, devoid of absolutely all emotion. After their talk yesterday she had felt like he was starting to open up a little more, at the very least he had seemed to be getting more comfortable with her. But now he was standing perfectly straight and speaking very formally.

"Thank you," Revan replied, giving her a faint nod. His voice was still very detached.

"Pretty polite for a cross dresser," muttered Jack, loud enough for everyone to hear.

"He just has different customs Jack," Shepard was surprised to hear that it was Miranda defending Revan, "It would be wise for you not to insult him; I guarantee he is more powerful than you. Or any other biotic for that matter."

Shepard agreed with everything Miranda said, she was just surprised to hear it coming from the Cerberus officer in the first place. She had been doing a very good job of not confronting Jack on any issues even when the younger woman tried to get a rise out of her. Shepard had to fight the grin that tried to form on her face. Did Miranda have a crush on Revan?

"Please, unless he is an Asari I doubt he could do shit to me," scoffed Jack, folding her arms over her chest, switching her glare from Miranda to Revan.

"Your arrogance will get you killed one day," said Revan, an edge of annoyance creeping into his voice.

"Please, you want to threaten me, don't wear your girlfriends dress around." Jack was glaring even harder now, but her slouched posture showed that she genuinely wasn't scared of Revan at all. She seemed to get a thrill out of riling other people up.

Everyone in the room was completely shocked when all Revan did was flick his hand and Jack went flying across the room, slamming into the medbay windows where she was pinned to the wall by an invisible force. Revan was holding his hand out in her direction, he slowly began tightening it into a fist and Shepard could hear Jack begin to gasp for breath, her eyes were wide, her face began to change color as she was unable to draw in air.

Shepard shook herself free of the shock and jumped to her feet, grabbing Revan's arm and throwing him back a step, "That enough!" she shouted.

Jack fell to the ground, landing heavily on her hands and knees where she began taking in ragged breaths. Shepard looked back to Revan. What the hell had that been about? She never got the chance to ask as he simply turned and left the room without a word.

"I am going to kill that fucker!" Growled Jack, rising to her feet, her body already glowing blue with biotics.

"Jack stand down!" Shepard snapped, stepping in front of the raging biotic, she could also see Garrus moving up behind the much smaller woman, "You provoked him, while I do not agree with what he did you certainly had it coming. I will talk to him but you are not to go near him, do I make myself clear?"

Jack just gave her a hateful look before storming away.

"EDI lock Jack from going down to the cargo bay," Shepard ordered, well this day had turned shitty very quickly. Looks like she had a whole new problem to deal with, maybe it was a good thing she didn't have any new dossiers. If she didn't get things sorted between Revan and Jack then it was going to be bad. Those two would destroy this ship in a fight; she would need to get things sorted as quickly as possible. She really didn't want to see the bill for a third Normandy.

* * *

**New chapter! Yay! I hope everyone liked it! This was a bloody tough chapter to write! I literally spent a whole day just trying to get the right wording in Meetra's speech about why she wears the armor. This chapter was initially a bit longer and contained only the flash back, but I decided to change it to this version. Still not sure which one I like better, but this one sets up the next chapter a bit better.**

**A quick note, I know some people don't like my authors notes, well that's okay, if you don't then just don't read them. I like doing them. If I ever have anything very important to say I will either put it at the start of the chapter or flag it in the bottom. Otherwise its just going to be my musings about the writing and addressing reviews.**

******IMPORTANT**** (see this is what it will look like)**

**Seriously this is an important note though as it is addressing a concern the vast majority of you have brought up. **

**I will not reveal if Revan and Shepard will be paired with eachother or someone else, as I am undecided on that. However I will let you know what at this point I am leaning towards a Revan and Shepard pairing. It's not set in stone but that is how I am starting to feel.**

**Also another important thing that I would like all your opinions on. I am considering bringing another character from the SW galaxy into ME. I have already figured out how to do this but I am undecided if I should, and as this will drastically impact the story so I would like all of your opinions. Either put it in your reviews or PM me if you would like to know which characters I am deciding between...if there a way I can set up a poll? ha ha.**

***** END OF IMPORTANT*****

**I hope you all liked my portrayal of Meetra! I am just ma****king her how I always envisioned her to be. Also just to address the concerns of a few people, I will not be overusing flash backs. I agree that many stories use way too many of them and it just gets annoying. This entire story will contain no more than 4 or 5, most will be Revan's but one will probably be Shepards. **

**Also with my portrayal of Jack, I just wanted to show that in the beginning she is a bitch and kind of annoying. This is just a reflection of my own opinions of her character, I really didn't like her at first and just found her annoying but after a while she grew on me. **

**HK should be making his arrival soon after Horizon...so 2 or three chapters! **

**Also I am really glad how many of you approved of the last chapter, I was incredibly nervous about that one. **

**Reviews!**

**christian. 1: Not a stupid question at all! I will definitely be building on the possibility of those characters getting together, however I do not want to give it away by giving a definite answer. Refer to the important note. It will be very difficult for Revan to be with Shepard, which is why I am really starting to favor that pairing.**

**Hachichiyyin: Thank you for your review! I realize that his character may seem off to some people but in my mind there really isn't a cannon Revan when it comes to personality. I know there are the comic books that dealt with the mandalorian wars and a few other sources that talk about his character. But I feel like the majority of it has been left undefined. Especially Revan during the civil war. Anyway I hope you still like the story and that Revan grows on you!**

**NightBringer325: It will be alot of fun when Tali and Legion join the crew and meet HK. Also about your idea, lets just say that I amy or may not be working on something like that (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) **

**FinlandNative: Yes Revan would win in a fight but Jack's biotics would still give him some of a challenge, she can unleash a massive amount of power very quickly. But like you say biotics will always be trumped by the force. I am going to try and work some of those quotes in, the ones you picked are actually some of the most powerful statements about Revan and I really like them so I am trying to fit in a way to use them. Thanks again for your review! As always your input is highly appreciated!**

**Universal-Public-Cockblocker: Thanks for your review! and as I said there will be no more than 4 or 5 flashbacks through this entire story.**

**Thank you to everyone else as well! I wish I could address you all individually but it would take way too much time. Know that I truly do appreciate the amazing support I am getting from you all. You are the people that keep me going and make me strive to be a better writer! **

**Thank you all so much! Please keep reading and reviewing! **

**You stay classy!**


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